Heart of Darkness
by daeyeth
Summary: A depressed Naruto is kidnapped by Itachi. Akatsuki trains him and Gaara, who they also captured, into fearless weapons. Five years later, Naruto and Gaara return to Konoha to take the jounin exam, but what are Akatsuki's true intentions?
1. Prologue

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

_Prologue_

* * *

One week had passed since Naruto and the others had brought back Sasuke. Naruto stared at the comatose boy resting in the bed with an unusually unreadable expression. Sakura and Naruto had taken it upon themselves to take turns watching Sasuke throughout the week, though the distraught girl was incredibly relunctant to let Naruto even get within five feet of Sasuke. He thought back to the day after they returned and Sakura's hateful glare...

_"WHAT DID YOU DO TO SASUKE-KUN NARUTO!" Sakura screamed._

_"Wh-what?" Naruto took a step back, surprised at his teammate._

_ "The doctors say that Sasuke-kun could be in a coma for weeks, months, or even..." Sakura hesitated, fearing her own words. "...or even years! What did you do to him!"_

_Naruto gulped and took a deep breath. "I-I was just keeping our promise...I had to do it, to bring him back..."_

_"You promised me you'd bring him back...BUT I DIDN'T ASK YOU TO KILL HIM IN THE PROCESS!"_

_ "I...I..." Naruto was confused. What was he supposed to say or do? What should have done? Sasuke nearly became a missing-nin. It had taken all Naruto had to bring Sasuke back alive. Naruto clenched his fist silently. 'Why couldn't she see that I wanted to bring back Sasuke alive just as much as she did? Why...'_

_"Get out of here Naruto..."_

_"B-But..."_

_ "JUST GET OUT!" She screamed, glaring at Naruto. Turning away, she murmured, "Please...I don't want to see your face right now."_

The next day he came to see Sasuke, Sakura was there. She greeted him with a sad smile, but Naruto could easily see behind the mask. She still blamed him. She still hated him. She never did apologize. Naruto's eyes became sad as he stared at the floor. "Why...? What did I ever do? I tried my best...Why can't I ever please them...?"

The villagers of Konoha had been less the receptive of Naruto's return. Not that he expected any thanks from them in the first place, but it seemed to him that they hated him even more, as if it was his fault for Sasuke, Neji, and Choji's conditions. That it was his fault for Sasuke turning to Orochimaru in the first place. His fault that Kyuubi killed their friends and family. He remembered one of his birthdays...the day of his birth and the day of Kyuubi's attack.

_"Look at that monster, smiling as if he doesn't have a care in the world!"_

_"Doesn't he care that today is the day of rememberance for the lives that were lost in that fateful battle?"_

_"Ha! Of course not! Afterall, HE was the one that KILLED them!"_

_"That demon brat...he should just die and rott in hell..."_

_"Shh, he's coming over here! Let's pretend we don't see him."_

How could they be so cruel to a boy of only six years old? Did they truly expect him to know all that? No. They didn't expect anything of him except to continue being the demon they all believed he was. The Sasuke incident was simply yet another thing to blame him for. Naruto raised his gaze to Sasuke, hatred clearly in eyes.

'I hate you Sasuke,' Naruto thought. 'I hate you for what you have, what you did, and what you have become. I hate you because you're everything that I'm not.' His fist clenched tighter as he felt tears well up in his eyes. 'I hate you because...because...we're friends you bastard. Why did you betray us? Why did you turn your back on me us?'

"Why..."

He heard footsteps coming. Quickly, Naruto composed himself.

"Hi Sakura...chan," he said, trying to hide the depression in his voice. Naruto hesitated on adding the suffix. He no longer had a crush on Sakura. He would have given anything to have things the way they were before Sasuke left. They were at least friends then. Now it seemed Sakura simply tolerating his presence.

"How is he?" the girl immediately asked.

Naruto shook his head.

"Ugh..."

Sakura and Naruto's eyes widened. That moan had come from Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun? Sasuke-kun, are you alright!" Sakura asked, hope in her eyes. She had her hands gently on his shoulders.

After a few more moans, Sasuke slowly sat up from his resting position. After one week of being in a coma, it appeared Sasuke was finally out of it.

Sakura was barely holding in her tears. "Oh thank goodness you're alright!"

A smile slowly made its way onto Naruto's face. "Sasuke..."

Instantly, Sasuke tensed. Naruto could feel the temperature drop rapidly. Sasuke turned his eyes to Naruto with an emotionless expression.

"Naruto..."

Sakura nodded with a smile, oblivious. "That's right, that's Naruto. He saved you from Orochimaru, just like he promised me he would! I'm so glad your safe!"

"Naruto..." Color gradually came back to Sasuke's eyes. The color of red. The fight. He remembered the fight. And Naruto.

Naruto.

"NARUTOOOO!" In a ferocious motion, Sasuke lunged from his bed and gripped onto Naruto's throat, squeezing as hard as he could.

Naruto had panicked look as he stared Sasuke back in the eyes, half fearful, half sad. "S-Sasuke..."

"SASUKE STOP IT!" Sakura cried out. She hugged him from behind and tried to pull him back. "It's alright now! You don't have to fight anymore! You're back with us! At Konoha!"

The grip on Naruto's throat slowly eased up until he dropped Naruto on the floor, letting the boy gasp for breath, coughing.

Sakura, still holding onto Sasuke, told Naruto, "You'd better leave until Sasuke comes to his senses."

Naruto merely nodded and heading for the door until three words froze him in place.

"I _hate _you."

...Why?

WHY?

Naruto gritted his teeth and ran from the hospital as fast as he could, Sasuke's voice still fresh in his mind.

_I hate you.  
_

* * *


	2. The Beginning of Darkness

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 1:  
_ The Beginning of Darkness_

* * *

Days had passed. Sasuke now seemed fully recovered from his mental injuries. Sakura told him that Sasuke didn't mean what he said back there at the hospital. 

_I hate you._

That was a lie. Unlike some people, Naruto had no doubt in his mind that Sasuke truly did hate him. Naruto cried himself to sleep that night. Something he hadn't done since he vowed to the people of Konoha that he would become the Hokage one day. He remembered the first time he met Sasuke. The silly, accidental kiss. Their first fight with the demon brothers and Sasuke's amazing display of skill. The day when they learned to run up trees using chakra, how they exchanged triumphant grins when they reached the top. The day when he thought Sasuke had died and how enraged he had been. He remembered all the good times they had as well as the bad times. And he remembered how things would never be the same between them ever again.

Naruto became increasingly depressed. He no longer had the will to smile and put up the mask as he always did. He could no longer ignore the hateful glares he recieved as he walked down the streets of Konoha. These were the people that he would be protecting when he became Hokage. People that despised every inch of his being. Could he live with that?

Was he willing to live with that?

"N-Naruto-kun!"

Naruto turned around to see Hinata smiling shyly at him. For Hinata, Naruto forced a smile onto his face. "Hi Hinata-chan. How're you doing?"

"I-I'm doing f-fine."

"That's good," he told. He saw a blush creep up onto her cheeks as he said that. Naruto's forced smile gradually became geniune. Dear, sweet Hinata. The girl who always stared at him when he thought he wasn't looking and gave him shy little smiles whenever he saw her. Perhaps the only person among genins who didn't blow off his morning greetings. The only person among his peers who saw him for who he really was before he became a genin.

Naruto took a step closer to Hinata, still smiling. "Hinata."

"Y-Yes?"

"I like you."

Hinata blinked in surprise. "Wh-what?"

"You're sweet, gentle, and have a lot of strength in here," Naruto said, putting his hand on his heart.

The blush on Hinata's cheeks deepened. "Th-thank you, Naruto-kun," she said, smiling.

"If something happens to me...if I went away...would you remember me?"

"O-Of course! I would never forget you Naruto-kun! Y-You..." She hesitated. "Y-You are a v-very precious person to me...N-Naruto-kun..." By now, her face was beat red. 'I can't believe I just said that!'

Naruto's smile widened. He closed his eyes. "Thank you..." Naruto began walking away.

"Wh-where are you going?" Hinata asked.

Naruto looked over his shoulder, still smiling. "For some ramen."

"O-Oh okay."

He paused for a second before he spoke again. "Hinata-chan...can you promise me something?"

"Hm? O-Of course Naruto-kun! Anything!" Hinata immediately replied.

"If anything happens to me, promise me that you'll find happiness."

"Wh-what? A-Are you...leaving?" Hinata asked fearfully.

Naruto shook his head. "I just have a feeling that...that something's going to happen soon." Things could never be the same after all. Not after all that had happened. Something was going to change, whether he liked it not. "Do you promise?" He held out his pinky.

"I...Y-Yes. I promise you Naruto-kun." She intertwined her pinky with his and the promise was made.

Grinning, Naruto added, "And if nothing does happen, you could just forget it heheh."

"I won't forget," Hinata said in a seriousness.

Naruto looked Hinata in surprise before regaining his grin. "Good."

* * *

Naruto stood atop a cliff within Konoha looking at the moon. He remembered his words to Hinata. He wasn't sure what urged him to say all that, but he felt it was right at the time. He wasn't running away though. No. He would never run away. 

_"WE CAN'T BEAT HIM! WE'VE GOT TO RUN!"_

He would pull through it and endure like he always did. Because he had to.

Suddenly, Naruto pulled out a kunai, jumped backwards, and got into a defensive stance.

"I know you're there! Come out!"

"Oh? I see you've gotten better since I last saw you."

A man in a dark cloak stepped out of the shadows. A man with red eyes.

Naruto instantly froze, his hand holding the kunai shaking. "Y-You!"

He stared at Naruto with his cold gaze. "It is time. You are coming with me."

Naruto gritted his teeth and forced his muscles to relax. He would not freeze up like he did. He would fight. "NO!"

Throwing several kunai in Itachi's direction while running away, Naruto leapt off the cliff and headed as fast as he could toward the village. 'I-I gotta get help!' There was a difference between running away and a tactical retreat. This was the latter. Naruto was headstrung but not insane. Itachi was an S-Class Criminal, who some say was even _stronger_ than Orochimaru. A cold shiver rushed through his spine as memories of what the Sharingan user did to Sasuke andKakashi while barely lifting a finger.

"You can't run..." he heard from behind him.

Maybe he couldn't run far, but thankfully he wasn't that far from the Konoha markets. Once he saw a few people standing out on the streets, he screamed, "H-HELP! HELP ME-- Oof!" Naruto was cut off as Itachi slammed foot into his back, sending him sprawling into the ground.

They turned to Naruto with an annoyed expression at first but that quickly turned to fear as they saw who was chasing him. They backed up in fear.

"I-Isn't that...?"

"It's Uchiha Itachi! The betrayer who killed his whole clan and abandoned Konoha!"

Grabbing Naruto roughly by the neck, Itachi addressed his witnesses, "I am taking him with me. If anyone tries to stop me I will kill you."

As Naruto struggled to get free of Itachi's vice like grasp, he looked at the people with a pleading expression and said, "P-Please! Someone get help!"

Not a single person moved. In fact, people in the surrounding houses actually closed their windows.

Tears began falling from his eyes. "P-Please...somebody...anybody..." But no one said or did anything. They simply looked away uncomfortably.

"ITACHI!"

A flurry of kunai and shuriken flew at the kidnapper but he took a few hops backwards and turned to his attacker calmly. "Sasuke."

Sasuke glared at the man with his sharingan berserk eyes. "I WILL KILL YOU!"

Itachi scoffed, looking unamused. "Please. You are still far too weak for me to even acknowledge your presence. I heard how you became Orochimaru's puppet and how this..." He roughly held Naruto up in the air who was still struggling. "...pathetic boy had to save. How sad."

Sasuke flinched. "SH-SHUT UP! I'll kill you and get vengance for the clan and our parents!"

Itachi put Naruto in front of him, placing a kunai against the boy's neck. Naruto quickly stopped struggling as the kunai was pressed against his skin hard enough to draw blood. "If you attack me I will kill this boy."

Naruto looked at Sasuke, hope in his eyes. "S-Sasuke...h-help..."

Words could not reach the avenger. Sasuke charged forward, kunai in hand, and screamed, "DIE!"

The cold, sharp metal slid across his neck and a spray of blood gushed out. Itachi pushed Naruto forward as he prepared to defend himself. The darkness slowly engulfed Naruto. With tears rolling down his cheeks, he looked at Sasuke with his wide, innocent eyes. The look of betrayal was clearly written on his face.

'Why?'

Sasuke could only see one thing in his tunnel vision unfortunately. The only thing he'd seen for the past 6 years. Itachi. And so, Sasuke, his face soaked in Naruto's own blood, ran past the boy without blinking an eye and thrust his weapon at Itachi.

Itachi parried with a kunai of his own. He grinned at Sasuke. A sinister grin. "You proved me wrong Sasuke. You have grown stronger. Good. But it is not your time yet." With that, Itachi put an incredible amount of chakra into his other hand and shoved his fist into Sasuke's stomach.

Sasuke clutched his stomach as he double-over, his conciousness fading. "I-I...will kill...you...one day..."

Itachi laughed. "One day Sasuke, one day. On this day, you have taken one step closer to that dream. Until next time little brother..."

Naruto couldn't see what happened next...

...for Naruto had died.

* * *

_  
What is this darkness?_

_It's warm._

_No one to hate me here._

_I see a light._

_It's cold._

_I don't like it._

_I turn my back on the light and embrace the darkness._

_It feels good._

* * *

Naruto awoke. 

No, he had not died that day. After finishing with his brother, Itachi had escaped with Naruto's body. He performed a short jutsu on Naruto's body and began applying a medicine to the cut. The dagger Itachi had slit Naruto's throat with was a special dagger than had been dipped in a special healing ointment.

Although Naruto's body was alive, part of him truly did die that day. It was a piece of him that he would never get back.

"Awake at last, I see."

He wasn't alone? Naruto, who was flat on his back, did not bother trying to move. He only moved his eyes to the source of the voice: Itachi.

He remembered.

"What...are you going to do with me?" Naruto murmured.

"I will take you to Akatsuki's base and then we will turn you into a finely honed weapon. We will make use of your powers, unlike Konoha."

"Kono...ha..."

_"My dream is to become Hokage and make everyone acknowledge me!"_

"T-Take me back...!" Naruto protested weakly.

Itachi raised an eyebrow. "You still want to go back there? Even after all that has happened? You would go back to a place where everyone despises you and wishes you dead? Where not a single person lifted a finger when you were in need of help?"

"...I-I...just don't want to run away..."

Itachi looked Naruto in surprise. He had to admit, he was impressed by the amount of will power Naruto displayed. "Interesting. Unfortunately, I cannot comply with your request. You will be better off in Akatsuki anyways. We will train you to make use of Kyuubi and make you more powerful than you can possibly imagine."

_"H-HELP! HELP ME!"_

_Tears began falling from his eyes. "P-Please...somebody...anybody..." But no one said or did anything. They simply looked away uncomfortably._

"I d-don't need your help...I don't need anyone..." Naruto muttered.

A small smile surfaced onto Itachi's features. "That is a good attitude. Don't worry, one day you will return to Konoha. When that day comes you will be more powerful than the Hokage himself. Then no one will be able to look away."

Naruto said nothing. Silently though, he clenched his fist and repeated Itachi's words to himself. '...No one will be able to look away...'

* * *

Tsunade looked down at a file on her desk with sadness in her eyes. She gently pressed her fingers against the picture before her. 

The file read:

Uzumaki Naruto.

Age: 13.

Deceased.

After Itachi had killed Naruto and taken his body, Tsunade sent out numerous of ANBU squads out in a furious attempt to locate Itachi but to no avail. Eventually the Fifth Hokage was forced to label the boy as a KIA (killed-in-action), no matter how much she didn't want to. Sasuke himself said he had seen Naruto die, though some wondered why Itachi had taken the boy's body.

As tragic as it was, Konoha moved on rather quickly after Naruto's kidnapping by Itachi. After all, ninjas died everyday. What was one more genin? The only difference was that this genin just happened to be the vessel of the demon Kyuubi. As far as the Hidden Leaf Village was concerned...good riddance. Only a few select were actually effected by the absence of the hyper-active ninja and those were mainly the rookie genins. Shikamaru, Neji, Kiba, and Chouji had all gained a new respect for Naruto when they went to get Sasuke back. They had fought and bled together. Hinata was also deeply hurt by Naruto's disappearance. She remembered their conversation they had earlier that day. For a whole week she couped herself up in her room, not speaking to anyone. But then she remembered her promise to Naruto. For him, Hinata would be strong.

Of all the genins, the once that were most affected were of course Naruto's own team. Sakura still remembered and deeply regretted her words and attitude toward Naruto the past week. No more would she hear the constant calls of 'Sakura-chan'. And now she could never tell Naruto how truly sorry she was. Only now could she admit that she truly missed and cared for the loud ninja.

As for Sasuke...

_Itachi put Naruto in front of him, placing a kunai against the boy's neck. Naruto quickly stopped struggling as the kunai was pressed against his skin hard enough to draw blood. "If you attack me I will kill this boy."_

_Naruto looked at Sasuke, hope in his eyes. "S-Sasuke...h-help..."_

Sasuke twisted in his sleep.

_The cold, sharp metal slid across his neck and a spray of blood gushed out. Itachi pushed Naruto forward as he prepared to defend himself. The darkness slowly engulfed Naruto. With tears rolling down his cheeks, he looked at Sasuke with his wide, innocent eyes. The look of betrayal was clearly written on his face._

_"Why?" Sasuke could almost hear coming from the boy, his dead eyes glaring right back into his Sharingan._

Sasuke awoke suddenly in a cold sweat.

"Th-that dream again..." he started, his voice shaking. "...no...not a dream...a nightmare...N-Naruto..." Sasuke stifled a cry. "...I-I'm...sorry..."

Wiping away his dry, salty tears, Sasuke tried to go back to sleep.

* * *

A/N: I know it seemed corny that Naruto happened to feel something was gonna happen, but I just had to get that scene in with Hinata. By the way, there are no pairings. There will definitely be some romance along the way but I'm not gonna say "this person is gonna get with that person". It's just not that type of story. And this is non-yaoi. Sorry. There will certainly be some male-male companionship, but nothing romantic. 

I got the idea for the Sasuke/Naruto/Itachi fight from another story. Really, it inspired me to write this story. The story is:

Redeem the Lost by SoulRetriever13

Check it out.


	3. Demons Within

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 2:  
_ Demons Within_

* * *

Itachi and Naruto arrived Akatsuki's base rather quickly. During that time, Naruto had once tried to escape from Itachi once and failed miserably. That was his only attempt. 'Why bother?' he begun to ask himself. The boy was in an even deeper depression then he was before he left Konoha. A part of him died that day and would never return. No matter how hard he tried, Naruto simply could not put on his fake smile no more.

Akatsuki, located in the depths of a complex cavern, was a mysterious and morbid place, similar to the leaders of the organization. Itachi and Kisame were the only ones Naruto had actually seen before. The others, whenever he was brought to the meeting room, were always clouded in shadow.

"So this is the vessel of Kyuubi," one of the shadows asked.

"Yes," Itachi answered.

Another shadow seemed to nod his head. "I can feel an enormous power within the boy."

One shadow seemed to chuckle. "Konoha were fools. To have the strength of a demon in the palm of their hands and yet all they do is shun and ignore it. How foolish."

"Sand is no better though. Although they attempted to control the boy, they failed miserably. The boy is a loose cannon. I am certain that he would of slaughtered the entire village one day had he not been given proper training."

"Most likely," Itachi agreed.

Naruto, who standing in the middle of room, wondered to himself, 'Sand?'

"We will not make that mistake however. Kisame, where is the boy that you captured?"

"He's outside," Kisame stated.

'Who are they talking about? It couldn't it?' Naruto thought.

"Let's have you and Itachi-san handle both the boys for their initial training unless you two have any objections?"

"No," Itachi replied.

Kisame, however, grimaced. "Aw what? I don't want to bother babysitting a bunch of brats--" He suddenly felt the glares of everyone in the room on him, Itachi included. "Er, I mean, sure no problem."

"Good. Start the training immediately."

Once outside the meeting room, Naruto saw him. The boy who had nearly killed Lee and Sakura and who had aided in the raid against Konoha...Gaara: the vessel of the demon Shukaku. He was sitting by himself, huddled in the corner with his knees against his chest. As Naruto walked into the room, Gaara's head snapped up and locked eyes with Naruto. They stared at each other for a long moment, neither saying a word.

"...You," Gaara said.

"Gaara..." Naruto wasn't sure of what to say. Gaara was a bitter enemy, one who had not hesitated in attempting to kill his friends and had almost completely incapitated one. On the other hand, Gaara was also just like him and in the same situation.

Thankfully, Itachi broke the pregnant silence. "I trust you have met this boy before. He will be training with you. Now follow us."

Gaara and Naruto silently followed Itachi and Kisame as the men lead them to a training room. Naruto couldn't help but keep sneaking glances at the other boy. What did he think of all this? Would he cooperate? Or would he try to escape back to Sand?

"What are you looking at, idiot?" Gaara spoke suddenly, interrupting his thoughts.

Naruto frowned, his brows furrowing. "Shut up. I was just wondering what you thought about this whole situation." Naruto lowered his voice and whispered, "Are you going to try to escape back to Sand?"

Gaara scoffed. He did not bother lowering his voice. "Why bother? I could care less about those sniveling fools. I will use this Akatsuki to make me stronger and then I will kill them all."

Naruto nervously glanced at the pair of Akatsuki ahead of them. "Um, I think they can hear you."

"I don't care."

Out in front, Kisame laughed out loud and muttered, "Brats."

Naruto wondered about what Gaara had said though. Why _should_ he care? They certainly didn't.

_Naruto looked at Sasuke, hope in his eyes. "S-Sasuke...h-help..."_

He quickly shook his head violently at the painful memory still fresh in his mind. 'Who cares about that bastard anyways. I don't need his help...I don't need anyone...'

Gaara watched the internal struggle Naruto was going through with an unreadable expression.

Once they arrived the training facility, Itachi asked the boys to state their weaknesses.

"Um..." Naruto pondered on the question for a bit. The old Naruto probably would of said that he didn't have any. What was his weakness? "I don't know that many jutsus I guess."

"I have no weaknesses," Gaara stated.

"Ehh!" Naruto immediately said. "Liar! Your weakness is that you're physically slow and your taijutsu sucks!"

Gaara glared menacingly at Naruto. "Would you care to test that theory?"

Naruto returned the glare. "I've beaten you before, I can beat you again!"

"Quiet down you punks," Kisame said, swinging his bandaged sword in between them. Naruto complied and, surprisingly, so did Gaara, though a faint 'hmph' could be heard.

"For the beginning training, we will devote half to working on your weaknesses. The other half will be used to train the demons within you," Itachi said.

The latter surprised both of them. "How're you going to do that?" Naruto asked.

"You'll see," he simply said.

* * *

The training had begun. Kisame spend most of the time viciously beating into Gaara, breaking through his sand armor, while giving him pointers about how to dodge and other ways of defending besides his sand. Throughout this, it was visibly clear that Gaara was having an extremely difficult time restraining himself and Shukaku. Kisame, on the other hand, was having a blast and grinning the whole time.

"C'mon kid, you can do better than that!" Kisame berated.

'Just until I can control Shukaku,' Gaara thought angrily. 'Then they can all die.'

While this was going on, Itachi spent the time trying to teach Naruto a few defensive elemental jutsus since he knew none. They weren't having much success.

"Pathetic. That looked nothing like I showed you," Itachi said harshly.

Naruto glared at his new teacher. "Well unlike _you_ I don't have a stupid Sharingan to help me!"

Itachi smirked suddenly. "How sad. I'm sure my little brother would of picked it up in no time."

Naruto instantly clenched his fist and attained a serious expression on his face. Narrowing his eyes, he concentrated and performed the seals. Thrusting his palms onto the ground, he shouted, "_Doton: Doryuu Heki!_"

Itachi looked at the result. "Horrible attempt."

Naruto grimaced as he looked at what he had done. A very small stone wall had formed that barely went up to his knee.

Kisame looked over and laughed. "Ha ha, what are you doing Itachi? Teaching him how to trip someone?"

Itachi ignored Kisame. "Let us move on to training your demons." He walked over to Gaara. "Release your sand armor."

Gaara looked like he going to refuse but did. The sand oozed off and onto the ground. As soon as the sand was off, Itachi pulled back his palm. With his fingertips burning of blue flames, he smashed his open palm into Gaara's stomach. Gaara flew backwards onto the ground and clutched his stomach.

"H-Hey! What did you do that for!" Naruto shouted angrily. He tried to approach Itachi but Kisame held him back with a hand.

"You'll see," Kisame stated.

Gaara gradually got up off the ground on one knee and gave Itachi a bloodthirsty glare. "Why you..." Ribbons of sand began swirling about the boy. "I'll kill you!"

"Is it not easier to control the sand now?" Itachi asked, not in the least intimidated by Gaara.

Gaara blinked. He held up his hand and saw the sand flowing around his arm freely. It _was_ easier. True, he did have control of the sand before but now he could do it effortlessly. He could probably perform the _Sabaku Kyuu _with just a single thought now. "Wh-what did you do?"

"I performed a seal on you. It allows Shukaku's chakra to freely combine with your own. This will also protect you from the demon's power so it does not completely consume you," Itachi explained. "It took me a very long time to find and learn that seal. It is one of the reasons I am the one supervising your training."

Gaara looked at himself, shocked. The cries of his 'mother' had abruptly stopped. No longer was there a voice urging him to kill and to drink upon the blood of others. A voice that had plagued him for most of his life.

Itachi turned to Naruto. "Now for you."

Naruto got into a defensive stance. "Wh-what?"

"You need to speak with Kyuubi."

Raising an eyebrow, Naruto smartly said, "Huh? How am I suppost to do that?"

"Look into my eyes."

Naruto did so, frightened at first. It wasn't long though before he became mesmorized by the _Mangekyou Sharingan _and slipped into a sleep.

* * *

Naruto looked around.

"Where...wait..." He whipped around and saw a gigantic gate behind him. "Here again." Naruto gulped as he sweated. The boy never enjoyed confrations with his inner demon. Who would? "I-I guess I better go in..."

Naruto walked up to gate and shoved against it while yelling, "KYUUBI!"

The gate moaned and gradually creaked open. At first, the only thing he saw on the other side was a pitch black darkness, but Naruto knew better. It only took a moment for the demonic spiritual form of Kyuubi to appear, his chakra whipping all about. The enourmous eyes peered at Naruto as if burning a hole straight through his chest.

_"WHAT DO YOU WANT, BOY?" _it growled.

"I...u-um..." Naruto felt flustered. What the hell _was_ he suppost to say? Itachi never enlightened him on that part.

Eventually Kyuubi became impatient. _"WELL? ARE YOU GOING TO JUST STAND THERE, STUTTERING LIKE A FOOL, OR YOU ARE OR ARE YOU GOING TO SPEAK UP?"_

At that, Naruto glared angrily at the demon. "Shut up. This is your damn fault you know. It's because of you that everyone hates and despises me!"

"..._AND?" _Naruto blinked, surprised at Kyuubi's reply. "_DO YOU THINK I LIKE THIS ANY MORE THAN YOU? BEING STUCK INSIDE A CRYBABY BRAT WHO CAN NEVER STAND UP FOR HIMSELF?"_

"What! I'm not no crybaby!" Naruto shouted back.

_"OH? SHOWING SOME BACKBONE FOR ONCE ARE YOU? EVEN AFTER LETTING THOSE PITIFUL HUMANS STEP ALL OVER YOU ALL THIS TIME?" _Kyuubi seemed to chuckle at the frustrated look the boy was displaying. "_THEN SPEAK UP AND TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT LITTLE MAN."_

The boy was silent for a moment. Appearing to make a decision, Naruto clenched his fist and yelled at the demon, "Give me your power!"

The fox demon laughed yet again. _"WHY SHOULD I? AS IF YOU DON'T USE ENOUGH OF IT ALREADY. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH MY POWER?"_

"I'll...I'll _force _everyone to acknowledge me! I'll show them all! I'll say to everyone, 'This is me! Look at how strong I am! Acknowledge my strength!' And then they won't ever be able to look away from me ever again!" Naruto cried out. All the years of pent up anger and depression that had been hidden deep within the boy finally seemed to be pouring out.

_"EVEN IF THEY LOOK AT YOU WITH FEAR AND HATRED IN THEIR EYES?"_

Naruto chuckled darkly. "Since when have they not?" he asked. "I don't care anymore. Whether they like it or not, I'll _make _them respect my strength even if it is out of fear."

_"THERE WILL BE REPERCUSSIONS TO THIS. YOU WILL BECOME MORE LIKE ME AND GAIN MY TRAITS. YOU WILL LOVE THE SMELL AND TASTE OF BLOOD. YOU MAY EVEN WANT TO MASSACRE EVERYONE FROM THAT PLACE YOU CALLED HOME!"_

Naruto thought about all the people in Konoha and their glares of hatred. He thought about his former crush, Sakura. He thought about how no one cared at all when his life was in danger. He thought of Sasuke.

"You don't understand..._I already do," _Naruto snarled.

At that, Kyuubi grinned ferociously, displaying its bloodthirsty canines. "_VERY WELL THEN. MY POWER IS YOURS TO USE FROM THIS DAY ON. YOU ARE UZUMAKI NARUTO OF KONOHA NO MORE."_

* * *

(All real jutsus from Naruto)

_Mangekyou Sharingan: _Kaleidescope Copy Wheel Eye  
_Doton - Doryuu Heki: _Earth - Earthslide Wall  
_Sabaku Kyuu: _Sand Coffin

* * *

A/N: I really do appreciate any of the errors (technical and grammatical) that are pointed out in reviews. I'm not perfect and often make mistakes on the first draft.

I realize the first couple of chapters were filled with a lot of angst. The whole story will most likely not be like that. I had to give Naruto a reason to cooperate with Akatsuki, a reason for him "going to the Dark Side" so to speak.

In case the Itachi/Sasuke/Naruto fight from last chapter seemed confusing, that was Itachi slitting Naruto's throat. Itachi threatened Sasuke that he would kill Naruto if Sasuke attacked him.


	4. Red Moon

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 3:  
_Red Moon_

* * *

A month had passed since Gaara and Naruto's training had begun. 

"We're going on a mission," Itachi stated suddenly.

"Eh?" Naruto pondered, raising an eyebrow.

"We are to sneak into the Hidden Village of Rock located in Stone Country," Itachi began explaining. Kisame, Gaara, and Naruto gathered around him. Itachi held up a roughly drawn map of the village that has various colored dots on it. "The target is here, in this mansion. His name is Kirosaga Rafa, right hand of a powerful crime lord. We are to assassinate him and kill anyone who spots us."

Gaara and Kisame took all this in, accepting it, but Naruto appeared a bit anxious. "Kill? We have to kill them?"

"Yes Naruto. That is what we have been contracted to do," Itachi stated. Normally, Akatsuki did not do simple jobs such as this, but this was more of a test for their new disciples. It was designed to test their ability to do battle effectively and efficiently without any qualms or objections. This was very important for a ninja and the type of weapons Akatsuki wanted to turn the boys into.

"Kisame and I will take care of Kirosaga. Gaara, you will head through the front and make a distraction. They should not have any high class ninja employed so I trust it will be nothing you cannot handle."

Gaara nodded. He knew what making a 'distraction' and had no problems with that.

Itachi turned to Naruto who still looked uneasy. "You will hold the entrance to the mansion from outside and make sure no else enters as they may call for reinforcements. Do you understand Naruto?"

"Y-Yeah, I got it," Naruto said, trying to steady his voice. This would be his first assassination mission ever.

Kisame tried not to roll his eyes at the fearful boy. 'And this is suppost to be one of our most powerful weapons?' he thought.

"Let's go."

* * *

It didn't take them long to journey into Stone Country. They were now only a couple days outside of the Hidden Village of Rock. Kisame and Itachi were huddled around a small campfire, discussing something. Gaara and Naruto were currently on lookout. Gaara was looking stoic as ever as he stared out into the rocky cliffs. Naruto was beside and appeared to be in deep thought. 

'Can I really kill when the time comes?' he wondered to himself. He thought about Konoha. The rage and anger immediately built up within him. Then Naruto thought of Hinata and Iruka...he couldn't bring himself to hurt them. He thought of Sakura. Even though Naruto was deeply hurt by her words and actions, could he really bring himself to kill her if he was face to face with her? And if he couldn't kill people that hated and abused him, how could Naruto possibly bring himself to take the life of a complete stranger who had done nothing to him? He didn't know...

* * *

The four ninjas of Akatsuki watched the mansion from afar, hidden in the darkness of night amonst the jagged cliffs surrounding Rock. Itachi glanced over at Naruto and Gaara, gave them a few hand signals, and headed off toward the back of the mansion with Kisame. Gaara and Naruto nodded, acknowledging the signals. 

A few minutes passed before Gaara started to move out, leaving Naruto by himself. To say that Naruto was nervous was understatement. He was _extremely_ anxious. Not only was this is first mission in months, it was also his first killing mission as well his first mission outside of Konoha. What if something went wrong? Or what if the guy had a family? Would they have to die too? Itachi assured him that the man had no family but what if he was wrong?

Naruto shook his head. No use worrying about that now. Focussing his attention, he studied Gaara. The front of the mansion was guarded only by two men, but who knew what was on the other side of that door. Gaara calmly walked up to the door, his arms crossed in front of his chest, and eyed the two men. The guards seemed to be asking what Gaara was doing but he didn't reply. They looked at each other, becoming alarmed, and began approaching Gaara. One of them looked like he was about to grab him, but the guard was abruptly thrown off his feet as a huge fist of sand pummeled into his chest. The man tumbled into his fellow guard and they flew even further, crashing through the wooden door entrance. Naruto could not see what happened next as Gaara was now inside the mansion. By the looks of it, it appeared the boy would have no problems handling himself, which was as suspected. Now all Naruto had to do was watch Gaara's back.

'Please no one come, please no one come...' Naruto chanted to himself.

One minute passed, though it seemed like an eternity for Naruto. He sighed, whispering to himself, "I hope they finish up soo--"

Naruto whipped his eyes toward the road as the sound of footsteps reached his sensitive ears. It wasn't long before five men entered his view, heading towards the mansion.

Naruto held up a kunai. 'Wh-what should I do? I...I don't want to kill them! But Itachi said if they see us, we have to...wait! That's it!' Forming a few seals, Naruto whispered, '_Kage Bushin no Jutsu.'_

What appeared beside Naruto were not several identical clones however. Instead he created several figures that took the form of an ANBU member. Quickly enwrapping a genjutsu around himself as well, Naruto and his clones charged into the unsuspecting men. All the men seemed to normal guards so they they weren't much of a much for Naruto and his clones.

"Who're--" Naruto socked him in the stomach and followed up with an uppercut to his chin. The men flew back onto the ground, unconcious.

"Th-there..." Naruto said, breathing a sigh of relief. He didn't have to kill anyone yet. After making his clones vanish, he decided to check in on Gaara and headed into the mansion. Oddly, he didn't see the two guards Gaara had initially confronted. The only thing that lie in the long beginning hallway was a trail of blood leading into another room. Curiously, Naruto followed the trail of blood to the doors and opened them. What he saw in the next room made him sick to his stomach.

Bloody, gutted bodies were scattered everywhere throughout the room. The stench of the blood was almost overwhelming for Naruto. In the middle of all the carnage, he saw Gaara with a crazed look on his face and above was a man encased in hand of sand. Naruto recognized the move.

"GAARA STOP!"

The bloodthirsty eyes snapped to Naruto, piercing through him.

Naruto flinched, but didn't back down. "Don't do it!"

The eyes became angered. "Stay out of my way," he growled. "This is our job."

"B-But you don't have to kill them like _that_..."

Gaara scoffed. "What does it matter in the end? A dead body is a dead body."

"Please! You don't have to listen to your demon anymore!"

Slightly surprised at the statement, Gaara's grip loosened slightly, allowing the man to drop from the sand and onto the floor, unconcious.

_Kill him. Kill them. KILL THEM. KILL THEM ALL!_

Gaara shook his head furiously, moaning, and put a hand to his temple. He had thought the voices had went away, but he was wrong. The moment he acquired the killer intent, Shukaku's cries came back in full force. He looked at Naruto, glaring. "What would you know! You know nothing of the pain I feel. I heard about the seal you have and it is nothing like mine. I have to _fight_ for control with Shukaku! Every waking minute is an endless battle!" Gaara's eyes became unfocussed and shakey. "You have no idea...this is the only way that I can satisfy his hunger!"

The fool didn't understand. No one did! That is why he would be alone...always...

"NO! You can keep fighting!" Naruto shouted at him. "If you give into his hunger then you've already lost the fight!"

"It's not that easy--"

_KILL HIM NOW._

Gaara cried out in pain, falling to his knees.

"Gaara--"

"SHUT UP!" Gaara shouted furiously. He thrust his hand at Naruto. A wave of a sand rushed at a wide-eyed Naruto.

Having no way out, Naruto shut his eyes and braced himself with arms out in front. He waited for the blow to come, but it never did. Slowly, he opened his eyes to see that the sand had not attacked him.

"Make sure your targets are dead next time," Gaara stated icily.

Surprised, Naruto looked behind and saw the sand wrapped around one of the guards he had thought he had defeated outside.

Gaara stared at the man in his grasp, peering into his prey's fearful eyes. Gaara kept staring, waiting to feel something with the man's life in his palm but it never came. 'I...I silenced Shukaku?' he thought to himself, amazed. He didn't know whether it was Naruto's encouraging words or Itachi's new seal, but Gaara had finally managed to defeat his inner demon for self-control. At least for now, but a victory was a victory. Coming out of his deep thoughts, he gazed at his victim. 'I could kill this man right now with the _Sabaku Kyuu_...'

"G-Gaara..." Naruto managed. 'I-I thought I could get away without killing anyone but if Gaara hadn't of saved me, I might of been dead by now!' The boy looked at the man within the sands grasp whose eyes looked like that of a rabid dog about to be put down. 'And now, because of me, this man is going to be tortured to death by the...'

"_Sabaku..."_

Naruto turned his eyes away, unable to look at the result of his actions. 'This is all my fault...'

"..._Shoushin."_

'Huh?' Naruto gaped. Instead of seeing a man implode within the hand of sand, he only saw the man's eyes go blank for a second before his head dropped limp. "What did you do?"

"I used the sand to force an extreme amount of pressure on to his heart, stopping it from functioning. It is an instant death," Gaara stated.

A small smile formed on Naruto's lips. "Gaara--" he started, but was cut off.

"Next time I won't clean up your mess, weakling," the boy of Sand said coldly.

Naruto flinched visibly. "Sorry..."

Gaara shoved passed Naruto, throwing the boy off balance, and walked out of the mansion.

"Naruto."

Naruto turned to see Itachi behind him with his usual expressionless facade.

"You did not kill the guards." It was a statement, not a question.

"N-No..." Naruto began, wincing at Itachi's tone. "I thought I could beat them without--"

Itachi cut in. "You were not ordered to think. You were told to kill anyone who tries to enter the building."

Naruto protested, "But you said only to kill people that see us so I just used a genjutsu and..."

"Do you think that makes any difference?" Itachi asked coldly. "I saw what happened. What would you have done had Gaara not been there?"

The distraught ninja didn't reply because he knew where Itachi going and knew he was right.

"Naruto...Tell me this Naruto. What are you?"

"H-Huh?"

"Tell me what you are. What have you been training to become?"

"Um...a ninja?" Naruto started slowly, not seeing what Itachi was getting at.

Itachi nodded. "That's right. A ninja. What is Konoha, Naruto?"

"It's...it's a village of ninjas?" Naruto still didn't see where he was going but continued to answer the questions anyways.

"Right. Konoha is a hidden village of ninja. You have been training since the age of four to become a ninja, to become good at what you do," Itachi explained. "Do not disguise what a ninja is. We are elite bodyguards, spies, and assassinsWe are _killers_. Murderers. Call it whatever you want, but we are the hand of death. You been trained since the age of four to learn how to become a good killer. Do you understand that?"

Realization gradually lit up in Naruto's eyes as Itachi's words stuck a cord. He was right. Every single jounin, all the chuunins, all the genins, all the children in the Academy...they were all trained killers. Everything that Naruto learned at the academy was how to be stealthy and how to decapitate opponents quickly and efficiently. The very first thing children learned in the academy was how to throw a kunai: a sharp metal weapon created to pierce through human flesh. Why didn't he realize it sooner? Even if he had not been kidnapped by Akatsuki, he would of inevitabley been given a mission to kill from Konoha.

"Think about that." Itachi walked passed Naruto and through the exit.

'Ninjas are...killers...'

* * *

On the way back to Akatsuki's home base, Naruto and Gaara were once again on watch. Neither had spoken to each other since the last mission. 

Naruto cast a quick glance toward his companion. After a moment's hesitation, he spoke up.

"Hey...Gaara..."

"...What."

"Do you ever miss Sand?"

"No," came the immediate answer.

"But what about your brother and sister? Don't you miss them? Even just a little?" Naruto asked.

"..." Gaara said nothing.

Naruto sighed. Looking away from Gaara, he turned to the scenery. "I don't know what I'm getting at...I just...Sometimes I don't know if this is the right choice."

For a long time no one said anything. Gaara glanced at Naruto. The boy was still thinking to himself, his eyes clearly displaying a struggle. 'He has changed so much...' Gaara thought. The boy before Gaara seemed merely a shell of his former over confident self. During the month of training with Naruto, he realized that this Naruto was nothing like the ninja who had made Gaara realize that he didn't have to be alone and that he had a choice.

_"This is my way of the ninja!"_

It was this memory that made Gaara speak up contrary to his normal judgement. "I don't know what has happened to you..." Gaara began, catching Naruto's attention, "but I'm disappointed in what you have become. You disgust me."

"Wh-what?" Naruto said, surprised.

Gaara stared into Naruto's eyes coldly, unblinking. "The ninja I knew during the chuunin exam, the person who shamelessly defeated me to defend the life of his comrades, was not one to doubt his own decisions. You always had full confidence in the actions you took and you never looked back. You were one who looked forward. Always."

Before Naruto could respond, Gaara took off.

"Never looked back huh..." Naruto whispered to himself.

* * *

(Naruto Jutsus) 

_Kage Bushin no Jutsu - _Shadow Clone Skill  
_Sabaku Kyuu _- Desert Coffin

(Original Jutsus)

_Sabaku Shoushin - _Desert Heartbreak

* * *


	5. Return to Konoha

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 4:  
_ Return to Konoha_

* * *

Naruto's first kill had been nothing special. The man had been a former ANBU that was working as a mercenary. He had been guarding their target, which was unfortunate for him. Naruto killed him with a well placed kunai into his heart. He died near instantly. His first kill. There were no extraodinary emotions that he felt when the deed had finally been done. There was no sadness in his heart for killing the stranger nor was there a feeling of enjoyment, something that he had at first feared would happen. He simply didn't feel...anything. He was just getting the job done. Although this had been his first kill, this had not been the first time he had seen a dead body, not by far. 

'What should I be feeling?' Naruto wondered to himself, confused. 'Shouldn't I be feeling sad that I have just taken the life of another human being? But...he's a mercenary. He accepted the dangers of his job. He would of died eventually. No one lives forever. What difference does it make that I was the one that killed him? If I hadn't done it, some other ninja would have...'

Naruto held up his blood soaked kunai and stared at it intently. Gripping the handle tightly, he murmured to himself, "This is the life that I have chosen." The whispered statement marked the end of Naruto's childhood innocence and the beginning of a new path.

Five years passed since that time.

The day was bright and sunny with a clear blue sky over Konoha. Two young men were slowly walking up to the gates of the hidden village. The men were both garbed in light black cloaks that was red on the inside. The collars of the cloaks were open, revealing masks that resembled the hunter-nin masks. At the forehead of the masks a symbol of a crescent moon was etched. Both masks were identical except for two distinctions: one mask had three long whisker type markings on both sides of the cheeks and the other mask had the character for 'love' written in the upper corner of it. The whiskered masked man had bright wild blond hair that appeared reminiscent of the 4th Hokage from the monument that towered high above Konoha. The 'love' marked masked man had short, spikey red hair and carried a large, oversized black gourd on his back. The men were only slightly shorter than average adult height that suggested they still had not yet grown to their full length yet.

The two made there way gates of Konoha that was guarded by two men.

"State your name and purpose please," the guard immediately asked.

"I'm Tenma and he's Akuma," the blond man said, taking out his passport. "We are from the Hidden Village of Moon. We're here to take the jounin exam."

The guards glanced at the passports before nodding and stepping aside. The two walked into the village.

"Konoha..." the blond haired man whispered in a whimsical tone.

The redhead looked over at his companion. "...Naruto."

Naruto shook his head to himself. "Don't worry about me Gaara, I'm fine. It just feels weird coming back after so long." Both spoke in very low tones so that only they could hear each other's words. To anyone else it would appear as if they were opening their mouths but no words were coming out.

Gaara nodded, then looked around. "Where is your shadow?"

He shrugged. "Scoping out the area I think. I told him to search for possible places where they might be keeping them."

"I see."

They continued to walk in silence for a moment until Naruto spoke up suddenly. "Hey, let's go get some ramen."

"...Ramen."

"Yup, ramen. We have an hour to kill and we can let my shadow do most of the information gathering."

Gaara simply shook his head but followed Naruto to a nearby ramen stand.

"Welcome!" the man behind the counter greeted them as they sat down on the stools. "What would you like to order for today?"

"Beef ramen please," Naruto answered.

"Same," Gaara said.

"Gotcha! Coming right up!"

They recieved orders rather quickly and began eating. They managed to eat with their masks on by tilting them up slightly and slipping the food underneath.

"Welcome! What can I get you three for today?"

Gaara and Naruto continued to eat silence as the other customers came and sat up at the counter beside them.

"Give us three super sized special ramen!" Chouji shouted. "Today's a special occassion because our buddy here's taking the jounin exam!"

"Hey! Don't order for me! I have to stay on a strict diet you know!" Ino said.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "Geez, what for. You look fine if you ask me."

Ino blushed slightly. "Really?"

"Yeah. A little baby fat never hurt anyone-- o-ow!" Shikamaru rubbed the back of his head. "What did you hit me for?"

Ino glared. "You know why you jerk!"

Shikamaru crossed his arms. "Hmph. So troublesome..."

"Man, can't you two get a room?" Chouji cut in.

"W-What!" both said in surprise.

Chouji smirked. "At least wait until _after _Shikamaru becomes jounin and then you two can celebrate."

"I-I don't know what your talking about Chouji!" Ino angrily protested.

"Y-Yeah," Shikamaru agreed. "Anyways...I don't see what the big deal is. I don't know why they had to force me to take this troublesome exam."

"Well you were suppost to take it last time you dummy!" Ino told him.

"Yeah!" Chouji agreed. "These only happen once every two years you know."

"Hmph."

"By the way, who's your partner?" Ino wondered curiously. "Everyone has to be in teams of two for this year's jounin exam right?"

Shikamaru nodded, but looked annoyed. "Yeah. It's bad enough that I have to take part in the jounin exam in the first place, but now I gotta be stuck with someone the whole time? Great..."

"I don't think that's a bad thing, Shikamaru. You could just let your partner do all the work!" Chouji said with a grin.

"Hmph, not my style."

"So who is he?" Ino asked again.

"The Hyuuga."

Ino raised an eyebrow. "Hinata?"

"No. Hinata's with Kiba, not surprisingly. My partner is Neji."

"Ehh! He's still a chuunin?" Chouji said, surprised.

"Yeah, for one reason or another."

"Come to think of it," Ino started with a thoughtful expression, "Shino's the only one of us from the old rookie genin pack that's already a jounin huh. Isn't he in the ANBU?"

"Yeah. He's--" Shikamaru froze in mid-sentence abruptly, his eyes going wide.

His companions looked at him curiously. "What's the matter Shikamaru?"

Shikamaru didn't reply as he snapped his head to the seats empty seats beside them. 'What the hell! I didn't even feel them move! How the hell did they vanish so quickly without me noticing?' he thought to himself. 'It's like they were never there to begin with...like ghosts.'

"Eh? Shikamaru?...SHIKAMARU!" Ino whapped the young man across the back of his head.

"Ow! What did you do that for woman!" Shikamaru said, glaring.

"Because you were zoning out and ignoring us you lazy bum!" Ino replied, returning the glare.

Shikamaru rubbed his head softly. "Geez...troublesome girl..." he muttered under his breath.

"What was that!"

"Nothing...nothing..." Silently, the chuunin thought, 'Who were those two...'

* * *

Naruto and Gaara walked up to the jounin exam building and could see three figures standing in front of the entrance. Naruto recognized the three figures. With each step, Naruto's blood began to boil within him. It was him. The so called 'friend' that betrayed him and hadn't batted an eye at his death. Naruto gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. He should kill the foolish Uchiha right now, right there... 

"Naruto," Gaara said a low tone, "It is not yet time. Remember the plan. We're suppost to keep a low profile until the tournament."

Slowly, Naruto's fist unclenched. "Hah, funny hearing that from you. Don't worry, I'll control myself...we'll be fighting sooner or later anyways."

As they got closer, their conversation reached their ears.

"Hmph, I don't see why I have to be stuck with this idiot," Sasuke muttered.

"It's the only way I can assure that no one else defeats you but me, Sasuke-kun!" Lee said ethusiastically. "Because we are eternal rivals!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes while their third companion giggled at them.

"Well good luck you two!" Sakura told them. "I better get going now."

'Look at them - those cheery, oblivious idiots,' Naruto thought to himself in disgust. 'It looks like nothing changed at all in this secluded, happy-go-lucky village of 'ninja' while I was away. It's no wonder I was so ignorant when I was living here.' Naruto cleared his throat and said in a cold voice, "Excuse us."

All three looked up surprised having not even noticed the newcomers presence. Two figures dressed in dark cloaks and hunter-nin face masks met their eyes.

"Oh, sorry," Sakura said, stepping aside. Sasuke and Lee did likewise.

As Naruto passed Sasuke, he met the Uchiha's eyes for a brief second then broke contact. A sharp, powerful force suddenly pressed into Sasuke's chest, halting his breath, before it vanished soon after.

"What...was that?" Sasuke whispered, clutching his chest. His eyes were wavering with anxiety and his voice was shakey.

Lee and Sakura shared a glance of confusion as they looked their friend. "Eh? What was what, Sasuke-kun?" Lee asked.

"You didn't feel it?" Sasuke replied.

Sakura looked at Sasuke with concern. "Feel what?"

After a moment, Sasuke turned away and said, "Nothing...nevermind. It was nothing." He turned his gaze toward the two figures entering the building with questions forming in his head. 'Who are they? And what was that? It felt like...like I was about to _die,_' he thought with a shudder.

* * *

The Shadow quietly crawled across the ceiling of the main administration office of Konoha, invisible to the naked eye as he was skillfully wrapped in a genjutsu. He passed over many Konoha ninjas but they all walked by, oblivious. The Shadow cautiously avoided the high risk areas, such as the Hokage's office and jounin gathering rooms. Carefully but quickly, he made his way to one room in particular where he could find the scrolls that he wanted. Peeking in, the Shadow scanned the proximity and saw that no one was there. He dropped down from the ceiling without making a sound and started towards a row of filing cabinets. 

As he sifted through, one scroll caught the Shadow's eye. He opened the scroll and began to read it. "This is..."

Just outside the office, Anko was walking through the hallways with a bored look. 'It's so boring now a days. I haven't been given a high ranking mission in so long it seems like.' She sighed to herself. 'I wouldn't even mind being the jounin examiner just for the change of pace.' For a long while, the female jounin had gradually begun to feel as if something was missing in her life. 'I want to fight someone strong. I want to learn a new jutsu. I want to do _something _other than just sit around here all day,' she thought in exasperation.

'What's happened to me?' Years ago, when she was younger, she used to push herself in her daily training, physically and mentally. She had made it her goal to learn a new jutsu or new move every week. It was the feeling of accomplishment of learning something fresh that motivated her. Anko loved it. She loved how she could see herself constantly growing stronger every day. She loved fighting against stronger opponents with her new jutsus and the adrenaline of undergoing a difficult, life or death mission. People used to call her a genius ninja because of that attitude. They were amazed at the growth she displayed and her quick development. So what had changed? What had made her become just another ninja in the ranks of Konoha? She knew what it was. Orochimaru. After him, after seeing what power could do to a man, she became afraid of becoming like that. On that day of betrayal, she had lost her power hungry attitude.

"Ouch!" Anko felt a pain pulsing from her neck. She placed her hand over the cursed seal. 'The seal again...it's been acting up lately. I wonder why?'

Anko shrugged to herself. She'll get it checked out later. Walking up to the office room, her hand reached over to open the door but stopped right when she touched the handle. 'Wait...something's not right here.'

The Shadow finished slipping several useful documents he had discovered into his shirt and quietly closed the cabinet. The Shadow's ear twitched. Whipping out a kunai in the blink of an eye, he took a step back hastily and parried the shuriken that was flying towards him.

"I don't know who you are," Anko began, "but we at Konoha don't appreciate strangers looking into our personal files." She examined the man with a critical eye. His identity was completely conceiled by the plain hunter-nin face mask and solid black clothing.

"Give up right now or else," she demanded. "You don't stand a chance against one of Konoha's best, Mitarashi Anko!" Anko, smirking confidently, held up several kunai at the invader. "If you do give up, I promise I'll let you-- H-HEY!"

In the midst of Anko's speech, the man made a leap towards the window and smashed through it. Cursing to herself, she ran to the window and peered out it. The man had landed on a roof below, unharmed, and was currently attempting to escape at full speed.

"You won't get away!" she shouted as she leapt out the window herself and started racing after him.

* * *

A/N: Ah yes, the long awaited return to Konoha. What a difficult chapter. I rewrote it at least three times and had so much thrown away stuff that it'd be enough for a whole other chapter. Even though it probably seemed as if nothing really happened in this chapter, it was just the setup. Thing's are just barely beginning. 

Did it seemed like I suddenly skipped ahead? I didn't want to make it too abrupt so that's what the last chapter was devoted to. It was supposed to give a glimpse into how Gaara and Naruto would slowly change over the years, but I also didn't want to go into too much depth. There will be numerous flashbacks throughout the story.

Gaara and Naruto are wearing the same cloaks that Kisame and Itachi wear except without the trademark red clouds. They also wear the same type of mask that Haku wore.


	6. Jounin Exam

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 5:  
_ Jounin Exam_

* * *

"Welcome to the Jounin Exam everybody!" Gai ethusiastically shouted to everyone as he made his grandoise entrance.

Gai, as Naruto could recall, was the former jounin sensei over Lee's team. Naruto doubted that the man would recognize he or Gaara. So far, there were only a few threats that warranted the young man's attention. As expected, the hometown of the exam had the strongest teams which wasn't surprising as such a thing was expected. The hometown advantage meant a great deal and not many were willing to risk sending their elite ninja proteges into enemy territory. A lot could happen during the exams and losing jounin candidates was a serious loss to ninja villages. This was one of the ways that the jounin exam differed from the chuunin exam.

Gaara and Naruto had arrived rather early so they had a chance to see all of their potential opponents. Currently, only two teams truly stood out from the rest and could pose as possible obstacles for the two members of Akatsuki. Those teams were Sasuke/Lee and Neji/Shikamaru. Part of their mission was to last until the second part of the exam without being identified. That meant that they could not use the full extent of their powers and would have to avoid familiar faces. Naruto glanced at the other teams. Total, there were only sixteen teams of two attending. The teams were comprised of pairs from Rain, Stone, Waterfall, Sand, and, of course, Leaf. Naruto's eyes slowly fell upon one team in particular. Hinata and Kiba. Would they be a threat he wondered? Kiba had extensive knowledge of his fighting techniques and could possibly remember his scent. And as for Hinata...

Naruto shook his head. No. They were not a threat. He was surprised they were even in the jounin exam in the first place, but he still doubted that they had become significantly stronger. They still appeared to be the same people that he remembered from before. Right now they seemed to be conversing about something. For whatever reason, Naruto gave into his curiosity and increased his hearing range.

"...Don't look so worried Hinata!" Kiba said, a confident smirk on his features. "We've both gotten a lot stronger! Both Kurenai-sensei and Shino think so too. These guys don't stand a chance!"

Hinata, looking towards the ground, shyly argued, "B-But Neji-niisan doesn't think so...and there's a lot of strong people entering this year's exam..."

"Hmph! Forget what Neji said! Either he doesn't want you to get in the way or he doesn't want you to get hurt but either way..." Kiba slowed down and cast his gaze aside as he gathered the courage to speak his next words. Hinata looked at Kiba curiously. Coughing, he finished, "...Um, I'll be here to protect you."

Hinata appeared surprised at the bold declaration before slowly forming a small, shy smile and nodding.

Naruto turned his attention away. Not important to the mission. Despite himself, Naruto couldn't help but feel just a little...

_"If anything happens to me, promise me that you'll find happiness."_

It doesn't matter. It was better this way. Naruto peered at another team beside them. There was one other team that could pose a mild problem. He glanced at Gaara. Although his companion appeared stoic as ever, Naruto knew better and knew what the young man was thinking of.

"Gaara," Naruto started, lowering his voice so that only Gaara could hear. Because they wore masks, no one could see their mouths moving.

"What," Gaara replied gruffly.

"The team from Sand..."

"They are of no concern," came the immediate reply.

Naruto eyed his companion closely. "...Are you sure? They have no affiliation with Leaf so it wouldn't matter if..."

"They are of no concern," he repeated.

Naruto tried to refrain himself from shaking his head at Gaara. Naruto knew his companion hated it when he passed judgement on him but still. They were his family, for better or worse. Family was something Naruto had no concept of having no blood related relatives himself. Though he knew that Gaara was never on the best of terms with his brother and sister, he also knew that they were all he had for the first thirteen years of his life. That had to of meant something. To let Kankuro and Temari that he was alive was the least he could do. Naruto's attention focussed back to Gai who was explaining the jounin exam.

"This jounin exam will consist of two parts. I will be guiding you all through the first half," Gai explained. "This part of the exam will test your speed and ability to execute a mission as quickly, but efficiently, as possible. Once the exam starts, which is as soon as I leave this room, it will be a race to a location that I will lead you to. At the very peek of that location there will numerous gems there. The gem you need to attain is an emerald gem. Each emerald will allow a team to pass. Only one gem per team is need."

The contestants listened to all this attentively, already making plans on how to get the gems first or ambush other teams.

"Once the emerald is attained, you must return to the location marked within Konoha immediately because only the first seven teams will pass, regardless of whether you have an emerald or not. There are no rules with the exception of no outside interferrence, which I and the ANBU will be monitoring and making sure of."

There were numerous murmerings among the contestants before Gai raised his hand for another announcement. "Two more things," Gai started slowly, a large grin appearing on his face. "Once those seven teams have arrived, the second half of the exam will begin immediately!"

At this, many of the teams gasped in surprise. A week long expidition in a fight against near-jounin level ninjas with no down time in between.

"O-Oi, that's too unreasonable!" one of the rain ninjas said. "For one, you Konoha ninjas will have an obvious advantage because you already know the area!"

Kankuro rolled his eyes and scoffed openly. "Pathetic...quit whining."

The rain ninja turned to glare at Kankuro. "What did you say?"

Gai interrupted them as he shook his head. "The area where the exam will be taking place is off limits to all Konoha personel that are chuunins and below. It is a training ground only for elite ninja because there are many dangerous traps and because it is on the outskirts of enemy territory." Gai's grinned widened. "Only the strong will survive my young ninjas!"

"...and?" Neji asked in a slightly tired tone. "What was the second thing you mentioned."

Gai's grin widened. "Ah! I did mention that this was a race didn't I? That means that I won't be waiting around...for you to catch up to me that is." In the blink of an eye, Gai vanished.

"Wh-what!" some of the contestants gasped. "Where did he go?"

"Damn, let's go before we lose him!"

The chuunins quickly vacated the room soon after Gai. Naruto and Gaara already left soon after guy, as did many of the more intelligent ninjas did, but this particular pair was in no hurry to catch up.

'He doesn't actually expect us to keep up with him,' Naruto thought. 'I'm pretty sure that the only ones that even chance in keeping pace with Gai is Lee and _him. _This is more to test our tracking abilities.'

"Oi."

Naruto looked over to his companion. "What?"

"Your shadow. Where is he?" Gaara asked.

Naruto blinked. "You're right, he's not following us." He closed his eyes for a second, then opened them. "...Something's happened. I can't sense him, he's too far away."

"The exam has already begun."

"I know." Naruto thought to himself momentarily. "...It can't be helped. He knows what to do if things get messy. C'mon, let's hurry up."

* * *

'Damn it,' Anko cursed to herself. The chase between her and the unknown ninja was being drawn out for too long. They were already out of the village. She needed to stop him quick before he ran back to any allies he had. Taking out an explosive seal, she quickly wrapped it around a kunai and launched it towards the unknown ninja. The kunai impaled a tree ahead of him and exploded in a flash of fire a second later. The kunai was well placed for the ninja was shoved through air by the explosion and sent crashing into a tree.

"That's far enough!" Anko shouted.

The Shadow quickly flipped to his feet and got into a defensive stance. Taking a moment to access the situation, he glanced from her to the space around her for escape routes but found none. Anko and the spy stared at each other for a long moment, neither moving an inch or saying anything. The spy's finger twitched ever so slightly, but Anko caught the movement instantly and decided at that moment to make her move.

"_Senai Jashuu!" _Anko shouted as she thrust her arms forward, unleashing a volley of hidden snakes that sprung from her sleeves. The snakes raced towards the spy at such an amazing speed that he was caught by surprise and could not guard against them. Sinking their teeth into his skin, they latched on both his wrists and ankles in crocodile-like vices. Anko pulled the spy towards her using the snakes then freed one of her armos of the snakes to grab hold of a kunai. The Shadow could not stop the momentum of the pull as he flew towards Anko headfirst who had the kunai ready to impale him. Anko made a stab at his chest, but the ninja snatched the wrist in midair before it could reach him. He then put his other hand on her shoulder and used her as a base to make a complete flip over her. While in midair the spy took out a kunai of his own and sliced off the other snakes vices from his body.

The Shadow quickly went on the counter-attack, launching several shurikens at Anko but she easily deflected the throwing stars with her weapon. She charged forward and started preparing a jutsu with hand signs. However, the Shadow already had another jutsu prepped up.

"_Katon: Hiyou Hidama no Jutsu!" _Cupping his hand around his mouth, he puffed out a large sphere of flames at Anko.

"_Senpuu Tosshin!"_ The Shadow was once again caught off guard as Anko burst through the fireball with her arms out in front and spinning inside a violent wind that dispersed the flames. She closed the distance quickly and slashed at the spy's face. He almost pulled his head back in time but she just managed to slit the cheek of his mask. Anko followed through her spin and excuted a roundhouse kick that completely connected into the Shadow's face. The kick sent him flying into the air and smashed him into the trunk of a tree.

Anko took advantage of the opposing ninja's disorientation to prepare another jutsu. Carrying a small stack of explosive seals in her palm, she held it in front of her face, she shouted, "_Fuuton: Daitoppa!" _and let a gigantic breath.An incredible blast of wind was launched at the Shadow, carrying the seals with it. He brought his arms up to block the jutsu but the powerful force completely knocked him off his feet. He was sent flying and shattering the tree that was behind him. The seals exploded a moment later, burying him in the flames.

Anko got into a defensive and stared at the rumble where the ninja was, ready to attack if he had survived her jutsu. 'I didn't hold back on him at all. He shouldn't be able to stand after all that,' Anko thought.

Eventually the Shadow slowly pulled himself out of the rumble, albeit beaten, burned, and cut up. His mask had shattered and revealed the face of a blue-eyed man with blonde spikey hair. The average female would say that it would be an understatement to call this man only good looking, though the cut that Anko gave him was there on his cheek. In contrast to his dashing handsome young face, however, were the cold, hardened eyes of a deadly predator. That is what Anko thought as she took in his appearance. There was also one other thing about the man that she couldn't quite put her finger on. He looked almost...familiar.

"Who are you? What village are you from?" Anko demanded of the man.

The man didn't answer immediately as he dusted himself off. He wiped a line of blood from his lip. "No one. Just a ghost," he said in a cold, emotionless monotone.

Anko scoffed. "Typical shinobi answer. I'll make you tell me before I kill you."

The Shadow shook his head. "The real fight's about to begin."

Anko couldn't help but smirk. Who was this guy kidding? She had pretty much wiped the floor with him in round one. "Ehh, real fight huh? You mean that wasn't all you had?"

The man narrowed his eyes for a moment until a small smile sudden lit up onto his features. "You caught me off guard. You fight so much like Orochimaru it's disgusting."

Anko's eyes widened and dropped her stance slightly. "Wh-what?"

"_Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"_

Before Anko knew it, a stream of fire was racing at her leaving her with little time to do anything besides curse out, "Shit!"

* * *

(Real Jutsus)

_Senai Jashuu - _Hidden Snake Hands  
_Fuuton: Daitoppa - _Wind Element: Grand Blast  
_Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu _- Fire Element: Grand Fireball Skill

(Original Jutsus)

_Katon: Hiyou Hidama no Jutsu - _Fire Element: Flying Fireball Skill  
_Senpuu Tosshin - _Whirlwind Rush

* * *

A/N: I don't know japanese. I'm using a translator so sorry if it's grammatically incorrect or I'm butchering the words. I know these chapters are short. The later chapters will probably be getting longer. 


	7. Reunion

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 6:  
_ Reunion_

* * *

A green blur blazed through the forest with an insane amount of speed. To the naked eye it would seem as if a sudden hurricane had struck the forest.

Gai glanced behind him as he sped to the first exam point. 'As I expected...only those two can keep up with me. I can sense them, just barely.' Grinning, he thought, 'That's my Lee!'

* * *

Naruto looked ahead, tracing any signs of Gai or other teams with his senses while he and Gaara leapt from branch to branch across the forest. 'Looks like there's two...no, three teams ahead of us,' he thought. He glanced behind him. 'We're not going that fast so there's probably two more teams that are nearby somewhere as well. Once we get the emeralds, we should be able to go full speed after that--'

Naruto halted suddenly, with Gaara following suit, and narrowed his eyes at the trail behind. After sharing a look with Gaara and exchanging a few hand signs, they both nodded. A spiral of red sand swirled around Gaara and he seemingly vanished into thin air.

Forming a seal, Naruto said, "_Kage Bushin no Jutsu_." In a puff of smoke, a Gaara-like clone appeared. Naruto and the clone stood out in the open and waited. After a while, Naruto shouted out, "We know you're there. There's no point in hiding any longer."

Silence met his call.

"We've let you follow us for long enough," Naruto stated.

Naruto waited. Nothing immediately happened after calling out the ninjas. Thinking back to the chuunin exam, had he been in the same situation, the ninjas there would have immediately came out and rushed him foolishly. Unfortunately, it didn't seem these opponents were that weak. Then not a second after that thought, a volley of daggers and shuriken burst forth at Naruto and the Gaara clone from the trees above him. Both of them easily sidestepped, having sensed the attack long before the weapons reached them. However, immediately after doing so, two throwing stars with wire attached to them shot out from behind. The stars curved around them in a long arc before whipping around and entrapping them tightly together in the wire. Naruto and the clone made no visible signs of struggle and simply stood there. Their two attackers finally revealed themselves and leapt out from hiding. One was holding the wire while the other out in front held up a pair of knives ready to finish the job. Both wore the symbol of the Hidden Village of Rain on their forehead protectors.

The attackers offered no arrogant expressions or words and only looked at them with a cool stare as they closed in on them. "This is the end," the one holding the knives stated.

Naruto shook his head from behind the mask. "No."

He raised an eyebrow. "No?"

"Goodbye," Naruto said calmly.

Before the rain ninjas could say anything, two gigantic red hands of sand sprung forth from beneath and completely engulfed them. The hands held them up in the air in a death grip, nearly crushing their bones.

"Wh-where...?" one of the rain ninjas managed to mutter out.

Naruto dismissed his clone as the real Gaara slowly appeared from the ground that had melted into sand. He stared at his captives for a moment, deciding something, then raised his hand up into the air and said as he closed his hand into a fist, "_Sabaku Shoushin."_

Both men shuddered violently, their eyes rolling up into the heads, then dropped lifelessly, Gaara let hands of sand disperse and the limp bodies fell to the ground.

"...That technique almost looked like..." A whisper came from the bushes. Normally, no one but the speak would have heard it, but Naruto's keen ears did.

"Come out right now," Naruto shouted suddenly, surprising Gaara. Gaara looked in the direction that Naruto was speaking to. "If you try to run, I will kill you."

A female figure came into view. Hesitantly, she approached Gaara who caught himself taking a startled step backwards.

"G-Gaara?" Temari asked cautiously. She took another step closer to him. "You...You're Gaara aren't you?"

Gaara didn't answer immediately. "...No." He started past Temari without looking her way. A hand latched onto his cloak, stopping him.

"I know it's you!" Temari said, her voice slowly sounding more assure of herself. Though he was mostly covered by his cloak and mask, he still had his signature features that she recognized - the character written onto his mask and his large gourd of sand, though now painted a blood red. His red hair was still short though he had grown physically since she had last seen him. While not towering over her, he was no longer a head shorter than her and was now a good inch taller.

"Where have been in the past five years? What did those people do with you? And why didn't you contact us and tell us you were alive!" The words came out half jumbled as she was frantically asking all the questions at once.

"..." Gaara said nothing as he did not know how to reply.

Temari stepped in front of Gaara and, slowly, raised her hand towards his face. Gaara didn't move as she removed the mask. Gaara's face looked like just how she expected it would. He appeared pretty much same, only older. But there was something more than that. There seemed to be something different in Gaara's eyes that differed drastically from the old Gaara. Temari knew what it was. It was that cold bloodlust he had constantly harbored. The look that made you afraid of looking at him the wrong way or face his wrath. That look, that psychotic fierceness, was no where to be seen in her younger brother's eyes. Though the physical mask was off, Gaara still had a cold, stoic expression on his features. He still seemed unassure of what to make of all this. As Temari was gathering her thoughts, deep, buried emotions caused Gaara to speak out first.

"...And? What is it you want now that you know it is me?" His chilling tone in which he spoke surprised even himself. However, he could not forget his past nor his old feelings that were beginning to surface.

"Wh-what?"

"Why do you care about where I have been in the past five years?" Gaara asked. "Since when did it matter to you whether I lived or died?"

"O-Of course it matters and why shouldn't I care! You're my younger brother. Family!" Temari said, angry at the accusation.

Gaara scoffed in disgust. "Family? That word means nothing to me. It was 'family' that put a demon inside of me. It was 'family' that tried to kill me as a child while pretending to care for me. It was 'family' that ignored and ran away from me when I wanted to be with them." Gaara became angrier with each passing word. He clenched his fist tightly.

"W-We couldn't help it!" Temari defended. "You were always glaring at us like...like you were going to murder us! And you know how out of control your power was as a child!"

"That's because that was the only way I could get you to pay attention to me! It wasn't until I used force did 'familyfinally look at me, even if it was with fear in their eyes." At the last statement, his force lowered to only a quiet murmur.

"...I-I..." Temari could no longer find the words to defend herself. Her knees collasped from beneath her and she fell to the ground with a soft sob. "...I-I'm...sorry..."

"Sorry!" Gaara shouted. "Do you think that will--"

"Gaara."

Gaara felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking beside him, he saw Naruto, unmasked, who had been quietly watching the scene unfold. The young man stepped in front of Gaara.

"That's enough isn't it?" Naruto asked softly while glacing at the girl crying to herself on the ground.

As Gaara stared at Temari, he felt a slight piercing in his chest but quickly ignored it. "Stay out of this--" He stopped in mid-sentence as he was taken by surprise when Naruto pressed his forehead softly against his.

"Family isn't always bad, is it?" Naruto asked, his eyes closed. "Afterall, me and you...we're family aren't we?" His eyes opened and a small smile crossed his face. "Brothers. Ever since that time remember?"

The anger gradually drained from Gaara's eyes as he nodded. "I remember..."

Naruto lifted his forehead and moved beside him. "There had to be some good times with your family, right? Even if there weren't that many."

Gaara's eyes moved to the ground and recalled the past. "...I...I remember when I was younger, Temari used to watch me when she thought I was asleep."

Temari pulled her head up in surprise.

"I could never truly sleep back then because of Shukaku. Some part of me was always concious," Gaara stated. "At first, I thought it was because she was thinking about killing me in my sleep but...one time, I remember I was having a nightmare. It was a bad nightmare and I...I must of been crying in my sleep. That's when I felt someone take me in their arms and cradle me gently. Whenever I had those nightmares, that person always seemed to be there to comfort and calm me."

_"M-Make them go away...make the demons go away..." a boy cried._

_"Shhh, it's alright...I won't let them hurt you. It's alright now."_

Gaara finally looked up from the ground to Temari. "That...that was you, wasn't it?"

Temari cast her gaze away, her cheeks colored with a light blush, and nodded. "You...you always looked so harmless in your sleep...I could forget that you had a demon in you." She stood up and looked at Gaara hesitantly. "Gaara...I'm sorry. I know that change won't change the past but...I hope you'll forgive me."

"...I forgive you."

Temari smiled and without a second thought she wrapped her arms around him in a fierce hug. "Thank you..."

Gaara stood there, accepting the embrace, but speechless and confused as he had no idea of what to say or do in such a situation. Cautiously at first, his arms came up to wrap themselves around Temari, returning the hug. A small smile crept up onto Gaara's face. 'This feels...good...' he thought. Abruptly, he blinked in surprise as he felt a wetness slide down his cheeks. "I'm...crying? Why am I crying?"

"Because you're happy, Gaara," Naruto said, smiling.

"Oh...I see." And that was all that was said for a long while.

After a comfortable silence, Gaara and Temari released each other.

Temari was the first speak up again. "What happened to you after you were kidnapped? And who did kidnap you?"

"The people that kidnapped me were from Akatsuki, an organization comprised of missing ninjas. I have been with them for the past five years now," Gaara said. "But I am with them of my own free will. I have no regrets." Gaara stared at Temari in the eye. "Temari, I have no intention of going to Sand."

"I see..." Temari looked down for a moment before raising her head with small shake. "It doesn't matter. You're alive." Her gaze then changed to Naruto with a curious, slightly cautious expression. "Who is he?"

Temari took the time to fully analyze the stranger before her for the first time. Her attention had been so focussed on Gaara that she had almost forgotten about his presence. The man was handsome, there was no doubting that, but that wasn't what she was looking at. What garnered her attention were his sharp, long nails -- which she found odd -- and particularly the whisker like markings on his cheeks. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but the markings reminded her of someone. There was also one other thing - his eyes. They were bright red with slitted pupils, like an animal. They were almost frightening. When she had first been discovered by the man, she caught a glimpse of his eyes through his mask. The fear she felt then was similar to the fear that surfaced when she looked into the eyes of Gaara when he loses control of his power; the sensation of being pierced by a predator's eyes right before he devoured you. However, as she peered deeper into the man's eyes, she could tell that they were different than that time just a moment before, as if she was no longer deemed a threat by him. There was no bloodlust in eyes. Only the hint of a dull sadness remained.

"You're staring," Naruto stated.

Temari blinked and blushed slightly as she turned away her eyes. "S-Sorry."

"I believe you met him before during the chuunin exams," Gaara said. "His name is Naruto. He fought with me when we attacked Konoha."

Temari's eyes widened. "You're _that_ kid!" Now that she knew who he was. It was true that he resembled the hyper-active boy from so long ago.

Naruto nodded in acknowledgement.

'Geez, I can't believe that brat turned out like this!' she thought in shock. 'He looks so...um...' Temari shook her head furiously, an embarrassed expression on her face. 'Looks aside, I'm surprised he turned out to be so reserved. I wonder what happened to him?' she thought. Out loud, she asked, "Why is he with you?"

"He was also kidnapped by Akatsuki five years ago," Gaara began explaining. "He is now my partner in this mission."

"This mission?" Temari asked, eyebrow raised. "Why are you here at the jounin exam anyways? What exactly are you two doing here?"

Gaara and Naruto exchanged glances. Both appeared to be thinking rather seriously until Naruto shook his head with a small, helpless smile. "I'll go with whatever you decide Gaara."

Gaara closed his eyes, smiled slightly, and nodded.

Temari looked back and forth between the two, confused. 'I feel like I'm missing something here. What exactly happened between these two during those five years? The Gaara I knew wouldn't of acted this friendly towards _anyone_, including myself and Kankuro.'

Gaara's expression became serious as he turned back to Temari and said in a stern tone, "Temari, you and Kankuro must leave the Konoha vixcinity immediately."

"What? Why?"

"Because, you are in danger. I can't go into further detail."

"...And so you expect me and Kankuro to abandon our mission just like that? With no explaination?"

Gaara nodded. "Yes. It's for the best."

Her eyes shot open. "You must be joking!" Temari said in an outburst. "For one, we'd be a disgrace to everyone in Sand if we just got up and left the jounin exam!"

"It doesn't matter because the exam is going be cancelled."

Again, Temari looked confused. "What? By who?"

"By us."

Temari's eyes widened. "Wh-What? You can't be serious...?"

"There are bigger things happening here than you and me, Temari," Gaara said. "You will be danger if you stay here."

Temari narrowed her eyes. "I can take care of myself. I _am_ one of the representatives for Sand afterall. They did not choose me for nothing. Besides, I'm not going to leave you, not after just finding out you're alive."

"No. You must leave. It's too dangerous," Gaara said, not budging.

"I am a ninja, damn it!" Temari shouted angrily. "I won't let you throw me away like this." Temari glared at Gaara.

Gaara glared back and prepared a retort. He was surprised at how much resistance Temari was displaying even if he was being a bit forceful. He had been so used to having Temari, and Kankuro, follow his every word without a single word of disobedience before. He had expected it to be same.

Inwardly, Temari herself was also surprised. It seemed so much more easier to think of this new Gaara as simply her younger brother, rather than a boy containing a demon. She had no idea what it was or why she had lost that fear of him. Perhaps it was because she had not seen him for over five years and that her feelings about him had changed over time. She had thought she lost him once and she wouldn't risk losing him again.

Naruto stepped in between the two and held up his hands. "Calm down, calm down. How about we let Temari, and Kankuro, accompany us? That way we can protect--"

"I don't need anyone to protect me," Temari immediately cut in.

"--watch over them," Naruto finished.

"No," Gaara replied.

Naruto sighed. "If Temari wants to stay here, there's not much we can do about it anyways--"

"Yes, there is."

Naruto and Temari looked at Gaara. "You would do that?" Naruto asked.

"...No."

"Then it's settled. Where is Kankuro, Temari?" Naruto asked her.

Temari thought for a moment. "Well, we said that we would meet around over there," she said, pointing southeast. "Since we had lost the trail, we had been following the tracks of two other teams but they went in different directions a little while back. About thirty minutes ago I think."

"Hmm." Naruto looked off in the southeast direction before turning to his partner. "Gaara, take Temari and get Kankuro. Southeast is the direction opposite of where the exam is. We don't have time to go and come back to get an emerald without risking being passed by too many teams. I will go and pick both us up two emeralds. We'll meet back at the dead trees, right before the bridge, south of here, on the west side. If any team possesses an emerald, they must pass through that point because that's the quickest route back."

Although she was surprised that Naruto had come up with a plan so quickly, she said, "That plan is ridiculous. Do you really think you'll be able to just waltz into there and take the emeralds without being killed by the other teams?"

"Yes."

"I don't like relying on you," Temari said. "Why don't you just come with us then we'll go get the gems together. It can't take _that_ long. At least, not enough for the other teams to pass us."

Naruto shook his head. "Before the fight with the rain ninja, there were three teams ahead of us. I'm sure that at least three other teams have passed us since then."

"What! That many already?"

"Yeah." Naruto turned away from them in the direction of the emeralds. "I move faster alone anyways. I'll be back." He was about to leave but he paused abruptly. He stood, contemplating something for a moment, before he said one last thing. "...Though I doubt this will happen," Naruto began, his back facing them, "as a last resort, if five teams have already passed, and I'm still not back yet, then just stop the other teams and take their emerald. I'll meet back with you guys at Konoha."

Gaara's eyes widened slightly. "Naruto, you..." But he waved goodbye and vanished before Gaara could finish.

"Will he really be able to do it?" Temari asked after a moment.

"He will. I have no doubts."

"...But then why did he say the last part? 'If he doesn't get back in time'?" Temari asked.

Gaara stared off into Naruto's direction. "...I have a feeling that is because if he meets a certain a person out there...he will go out of his way to kill him." Gaara added a thought to himself, 'Although that's not supposed to be part of the plan...Naruto, I hope you know what you're doing.'

* * *

Two ninjas - bruised and bloodied - glared at each other from a distance while they both took in hagard breaths of exhaustion. Both were still in fighting stances, kunais in hand. The two enemies grinned at each other simaltaneously. From the looks on their faces, it seemed as if they were enjoying their brutal fight to the death. In a way, they were, both on their own terms. However, the fight was beginning to stretch out dangerously long and they knew it would have to end soon. In appearance, they both seemed to be equally battered with numerous cuts and burns scattered throughout their figures.

'But...' they both thought.

Anko grinned.

The Shadow frowned. 'I need to do something soon. I'm running low on chakra and I can tell she still has a lot more left than me. I never thought I'd have to resort to using 'it'...I had no idea that she was this strong.'

Anko broke the silence. "As fun as this is, I'm going to have to end it soon. Last chance to give up." She recieved no answer. "Fine then...let's finish this!"

* * *

A/N: As always I try to keep characters as in-character as possible but also keep in mind that it has been five years so people do change.

I borrowed this quote "There are bigger things happening here than me and you." I think it was from the Lord of the Rings.

By the way, I probably won't have another chapter up until January because of the holidays.


	8. Discovery

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 7:  
_ Discovery_

* * *

The surroundings of Konoha was a serene, peaceful landscape. It was a secluded place, like many ninja villages, but had any average person stumble upon this place, they would not suspect that the inhabitants were members of the dark society. That was the kind of place Konoha and it fit the village's namesake perfectly. The birds chirped, the deers frolicked, and the sun shown down brightly upon the hidden village. No one would have guessed that a furious battle was taking place only a dozen miles out from the main village. 

Crouching, Anko hit her palms on the ground and shouted, "_Senai Jashuu!_"

The Shadow peered at the ground in front of him suspiciously and decided to leap up onto a tree behind him. Using chakra to stick his feet onto the trunk and hang horizontally, he said to her, "The same trick won't work on me twice, no matter the variation."

Anko didn't reply, only grinning, and dashed forward with a windmill shuriken in one hand. As she increased her speed, she begun spinning the windmill like a razor. The Shadow started to push off from his current position, but two snakes suddenly burst forth from out the tree and latched his ankles.

"Heh, it was fun while it lasted," Anko said, closing in.

The Shadow watched the woman close in on him for his impending death until a grin of his own appeared. He held out his hand to the side and called out, "_RASENGAN!" _A spinning, blue sphere of hissing chakra immediately appeared in his palm.

Anko's eyes widened as she was unable to stop her flight in midair. Gritting her teeth, she glared at him with a determined stare. Forming seals with one hand, she cried out, "_Goukafuusha no Jutsu!" _and the spinning windmill ignited into flames. She held out the windmill as far in front of herself as she could.

The Shadow pushed off from the tree with all his strength, unrooting the snakes, and flew at her, his whirling chakra sphere held out. Anko ascended towards the Shadow with a grim determination and hoped to at least displace her opponent's chakra attack. But as she glared at the man, something within her cone of vision caught her eye. She wasn't sure, but she thought she saw something behind the Shadow. As she got closer and closer to the Shadow, the object was made clear. Eyes widening in both fear and surprising, she stared into the eyes of another man. Gold, slitted eyes. The look on Anko's face must have been crystal clear for the Shadow's eyes also widened as he too realized that there was someone behind him. Everything seemed to go in an agonizing slow motion after that.

'O-Orochimaru...!' Anko thought, amazed. A man that should of been dead a dozen times over came forth from behind her opponent with his neck stretched out like a snake and his fangs beared. His eyes were not on her but on the neck of the Shadow ninja. 'Is he going to...?' Just as it seemed his fangs were about to pierce the Shadow's neck, Orochimaru stopped and looked up at, his eyes smiling. Anko growled at the provoke, furious. 'I won't let him make another victim...not ever again!' Without another thought, she threw her blazing windmill at Orochimaru. The windmill zipped by the Shadow and raced towards Orochimaru, but, as if expecting the attack, he easily swirved his neck sideways and dodged.

"I knew you would do that," he said with a grin. Orochimaru shoved the Shadow ninja out of his way, knocking him aside, and went straight for Anko who was completely defensiveless. Anko drew in a sharp gasp as she felt Orochimaru's teeth sink into the nape of her neck. Though not fast enough to stop his bite, she quickly shoved Orochimaru off her and backflipped to the ground. She clutched her bleeding wound with her hand and rounded on Orochimaru. "What did you do to me!"

Orochimaru smirked knowingly. "Just a little gift from me for neglecting you for so long."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean you bastard!" Anko shouted.

"Orochimaru..." The two turned their attention towards the Shadow who appeared furious. "The hell do you think you're doing?"

"My, my, no need to get so mad Naruto-kun," he said, chuckling. "I would think you would appreciate my help."

'What? Did he say Naruto?' Anko thought to herself.

"Help? Don't give me that, I know what you were about to do to me," Naruto growled dangerously. "And you know as well as I do that your curse won't work on me."

"Or will it?" Orochimaru asked, not expecting an answer. "We never tried. After all, you're chakra is still connected to your other body, isn't it Naruto-kun?"

Naruto had no rebuttal for that because he honestly wasn't sure either.

"What the hell is going on here?" Anko demanded, looking back and forth between Orochimaru and 'Naruto'. 'Wait...Naruto...?' Looking at the Shadow ninja with new eyes, she studied him more precisely. Blond, spikey hair, sky blue eyes...although the trademark whiskers were no where to be seen, there was no doubt that he resembled a boy she once knew. The thought was suddenly cut off as an unbearable pain throbed from her cursed seal. She was unable to stifle a cry of pain.

Naruto looked at Anko confused before glaring back Orochimaru. "What did you do to her!"

"Does it matter, Naruto-kun? You were going to kill her after all."

"And I still am. She knows too much now. You're not even supposed to be here!" Naruto argued.

Orochimaru shook his head, unconcerned. "It doesn't matter. She is mine now."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at Orochimaru who looked back with his disgusting arrogant grin. Naruto's eyes moved to glance at Anko out of the corner of his vision. Whatever pain she had apparently been feeling was gone now for was had stood back up again, ready to fight. He looked back at Orochimaru but with his hands up, forming seals. "_Katon: Hiyou Hidama no Jutsu!" _The ball of flames shot forth and struck the ground in between them. The flames from the chakra attack scattered quickly, seperating the three.

Anko looked at up Naruto, surprised, and he returned the look with a harsh stare. It was a glare that clearly stated, 'This isn't over yet.' Then he leapt off. Anko figured she better do the same and followed suit. As she ran, she could hear the laughter of Orochimaru echoeing throughout the forest. She clenched her fist. 'That bastard. What did he do to me? And what about that other guy? Could that be the same Naruto from years ago? I need to get back to Tsunade-sama and...report...all...of this...' Her strength abruptly began to leave her body, making her collapse to the ground. "Wha...?" Was the last word she got before she lost conciousness.

* * *

Naruto surveyed the open area before. The area had a large, wide radius that stretched at least a quarter of a mile. In the center was a small, rocky hill that jutted out from the ground and there lie the emeralds. At first glance, it didn't appear that there were that many and digging deeper into the hill would take time, which was dangerous. Scattered around the hill were a few dead bodies, as expected. Once you stepped into the plains where the hill was, there was no cover at all. He made a small, minor note in his head what villages they were from - two from Waterfall and one from Stone - then took a moment and closed his eyes. Naruto found early in training, after making the deal with his inner demon, that it was easier enhance the animalistic senses he had inherited by cutting off his vision. It helped him focus. He stretched his senses in search of any other ninja around, for which he was sure there was. The emerald hill was quite obviously a death trap and any intelligent ninja would know that. 

He heard nothing but the soft wisp of wind and the brush of leaves.

'Wait,' Naruto thought.

Pushing his hearing to the limit, he listened more carefully. It was faint, almost unaudible, but it was there. The breathing of a human being. It was mildly haggard and it appeared the ninja had trouble breathing. Sniffing the air lightly, he caught a very faint scent of blood. The man's breathing was become more erratic by the second.

'He's getting anxious. He must be hurt badly.' Naruto pulled out a kunai. 'He's going to make his move soon.'

Just as Naruto predicted, the ninja burst out from the trees and into the open area, making a mad dash for the emerald hill. Naruto caught a glimpse of his headband. He was from Stone. That meant his teammate was dead. The ninja from Stone quickly snatched an emerald out of the rocky, portruding hill and ran back to cover as fast he possibly could. Naruto watched all this patiently until the ninja reached the forest then he leapt off the branch and began tailing the Stone ninja. Naruto held his kunai in front of him and increased his speed.

'Now!'

Naruto leapt out at the Stone ninja, intent on pouncing. As he did so, however, directly across from him, on the other side of the Stone ninja, there was another chuunin who had apparently the same plan as Naruto. All three of the ninjas' eyes widened in surprise. The Stone ninja was first react as he was in between both of them. He leapt towards the other ninja that had appeared who immediately responded and slashed out at him with a claw-like hand. The Stone ninja blocked the attack and kicked both feet into the man's chest, using him as leverage to push off. As soon as the Stone ninja landed on to the ground, he quickly began the seals for a jutsu.

"_Doton: Enmaku Sakuretsu!" _Raising his fist into the air, he brought it down with all his might and smashed into the ground, resulting in a grand explosion. Naruto held up forearm in front of his mask to furious dust storm that kicked up. When the dust dissipated, only he and his would-be accomplice remained.

The blond ninja narrowed his eyes, peering at the new adversary before him. 'Kiba.'

Naruto and Kiba quickly glanced in the direction where they could both sense the man had gone and then back towards each other.

"Tch," Kiba muttered after a tense moment. Turning his body to face Naruto completely, Kiba got into a stance, claws outward, and grinned. "Looks like it's just me and you pal."

Naruto raised an eyebrow behind his mask. "You're not going to go after him?"

"Heh, don't worry about him. It's me you gotta fight right now!" Kiba volleyed several ninja stars at Naruto and rushed him. Pressing his palms together, Kiba executed a jutsu as Naruto dodged his projectiles. "_Gijyuu Ninpou: Shikyaku no Jutsu!" _As Kiba's speed drastically increased, he began running on all fours. Before Naruto knew it, Kiba was already on him and hurried to block the incoming attack. He managed to catch the punch in one hand but the second swipe nicked the front of his chest, shredding his shirt and cloak partially.

'Deja vu,' Naruto thought. 'But something's missing...that's right. His dog.' He quickly glanced at the surroundings but found Kiba's canine companion no where to be seen.

"_Tsuuga!" _Kiba shot at Naruto like a whirlwind bullet.

Naruto, taken by surprise, crossed his arms in an X, blocking it, and was shoved aside by the power of the attack.

"I wouldn't look away if I were you," Kiba commented, smirking. "If you even blink I'll shred you before you even realize it!"

Naruto said nothing in return, but did narrow his eyes. 'He's gotten a lot faster, I'll give him that.' He readied himself for a counter attack, forming a seal. "_Kage Buu--"_

"_Tsuuga!" _Kiba came at him again, faster than expected, and Naruto was unable to complete the jutsu. He leapt to the aside then jumped up over of another Tsuuga as Kiba doubled back. Only as he was in midair did he realize his mistake too late. The third Tsuuga shot straight up at him, too fast for him to dodge while in midair. Naruto was forced to take the blow and block with his arms to minimize the damage. He quickly landed on his feet though and tried his jutsu once again.

"_Kage--"_

_"Tsuuga!" _

The result was the same and Naruto was forced to halt in mid sentence to elude Kiba's taijutsu. The blond ninja clenched his teeth, frustrated. "That's it." Unbuckling his cloak, he took it off and he threw it to the ground. The cloak crashed with a resounding thump making Kiba raise an eyebrow.

'His cloak was weighted? Not that it'll matter though,' Kiba thought. Holding out his hand, the Konoha ninja gestured towards Naruto arrogantly. "Hah, alright let's see what you got. _Tsuuga!"_

At the same time Kiba launched, Naruto shot forward to meet him. The two collided. With his weighted handicap off, Naruto could see Kiba's Tsuuga with a crystal clarity. He met and parried each and every single one of the ninja's slashes. They eventually blew past one another but Naruto had managed to lockdown the Tsuuga.

Kiba growled at Naruto. "Hmph. Let's try that again..._Tsuuga!" _They clashed again. And again. And again. To an average person it would seem as if two blurs were bouncing off each other at an incredible speed. Then at last, the stalemate was broken. The next time they met Naruto twirled his torso around a swipe and countered with a fierce punch into Kiba's cheek. Naruto's knuckles met his jaw, grinding against one another until the kinetic energy of the fist vaulted Kiba out of midair and pummeled him into the dirt below. It took a moment before an angry Kiba gradually immerged from out of the rumble.

"Wanna try that again?" Naruto asked, mockingly serious.

Kiba glared at him. 'Damn it, the Tsuuga alone isn't gonna be enough.' As he thought, Kiba's grin slowly returned. Getting on all fours, he charged Naruto and prepared his taijutsu once more. "_Tsuuga!"_

Naruto dashed forward to meet him but his target had other plans. Kiba flew right past Naruto without even touching him. Naruto looked back at Kiba, confused, who was still grinning back at him. Just as Naruto was returning to the ground, a dog burst forth out of no where and chomped onto his shoulder viciously. He groaned out in pain and hastily shook off the dog. The dog took the throw in stride and landed on his feet beside Kiba.

"Hehe, good job Akamaru!" Kiba congratulated, patting the dog on the head.

'Damn, I had forgotten about that stupid dog,' Naruto thought, glaring at the beast who growled back at him. Akamaru had grown since Naruto had last seen him. The dog now appeared to be a young adult, his height reaching all the way up to Kiba's waist.

"But I thought I told you to stay with Hinata?" Kiba asked his companion. The dog shook its head and barked a couple times. "She said she could take care of him herself and sent you back to help me? Alright...I hope Hinata can handle that guy...huh? Oh, yeah, you're right Akamaru. She can take care of herself and that guy was injured anyways." Kiba turned to Naruto with a victorious smirk. "It's over now! Let's wipe the floor of this guy, right Akam...huh? What's wrong?"

Akamaru's growling was abnormally intense at Naruto who was clutching his shoulder with his hand. The animal seemed completely fixated on him.

"Akamaru? Oi, Akamaru!" The dog finally snapped out his trance and started barking words to Kiba. After a few seconds, Kiba's head snapped from his dog to Naruto with wide open eyes full of shock. "No way...That _can't_ be him Akamaru..._There's no way in hell that guy is Naruto_!"

* * *

(Real Jutsus) 

_Tsuuga - _Piercing Fang  
_Gijyuu Ninpou: Shikyaku no Jutsu _- Beast Mimicry Ninja Technique: Four Legs  
_Rasengan - _Rasengan  
_Senai Jashuu -_ Hidden Snake Hands

(Original Jutsus)

_Katon: Hiyou Hidama no Jutsu _- Fire Element: Flying Fireball Skill  
_Goukafuusha no Jutsu - _Grand Fire Windmill Skill  
_Doton: Enmaku Sakuretsu - _Earth Element: Smokescreen Explosion

* * *

A/N: Naruto's current appearance (his sharp nails, red eyes, etc.) are permanent features of his body regardless of his emotional state. He doesn't have any tails. And no, Orochimaru's arms aren't cured, he's still just in a temporary body. 


	9. Confrontations

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 8:  
_ Confrontations_

* * *

_  
A sea of dead bodies surrounded a single teenaged boy who stood alone in the chaos. Bleeding and breathing heavily, he struggled to keep standing and forced his weight to lean on both knees. The boy was startled when one of the seemingly dead bodies suddenly latched onto his ankle desperately. The downed man glared at the young man with a furious hatred. "I-I...won't let you...touch our village-" A sickening crunch cut into the man's final words._

_The young man removed his foot from the dead man's neck and stared down at the body with unreadable eyes. '...Why do they fight so fiercely for this tiny village of theirs? These people don't stand a chance in hell against us, but they keep fighting. I don't get it...' Images, unwillingly, began appearing in his head. Images of people he once knew, from a village he onced lived in, in a time that he could never go back to. It all seemed like so long ago but in reality, it really wasn't. How much he had changed in such a short amount of time._

_I d-don't need your help...I don't need anyone..._

_Abruptly, his senses began to go off incessantly, alarming him. He quickly looked up and peered into the misty distance. A line of shadows were just barely visible, but there. "Damn it..."_

_On the other side of the mist, the soldiers marched. One man stood above the rest, atop of a decorated horse._

_"Th-the demon was around here somewhere! It was!" a distraught man told the general._

_The general raised an eyebrow. "Are you certain it wasn't an illusion?"_

_The scout shook his head vigorously. "N-No! I'm positive! Th-that demon fox...it slaughtered everyone..." he said, his voice barely a whisper. His eyes appeared haunted as he retold his tale of horror. "W-We didn't stand a chance..."_

_The general nodded solemnly. "I see. Prepare yourselves men! It appears our enemy has made a deal with the devil, but we will not given!"_

_"AYE!" The soldiers behind him resounded in a cheer._

_They continued deeper into the valley. The area with oddly silent with only the clank of the soldiers armor and footsteps to be heard. The general's horse gave a squeel suddenly, halting in its trot. The general narrowed his eyes. "Get ready men!"_

_Weapons drawn, they stood anxiously awaiting their enemy. A long, uneasy moment passed. Then they appeared. The soldiers could not help but gasp in shock and fear at the sight before them. A grand army that nearly matched their own in numbers faded out of the mist. That was not the shocking part however. What surprised them was the frightening fact that every single ninja of the opposing army seemed to be an identical replica of one another. A one man army of hundreds._

* * *

"No way..." Kiba uttered in disbelief, shaking his head. "That _can't_ be him Akamaru..._There's no way in hell that guy is Naruto!"_

'...It's true that this guy smells a lot like Naruto, from what I can remember,' Kiba thought. 'But...it's still not the same. How can this cold-hearted guy be the same Naruto I knew? And his scent...even though it's similar, it's also different somehow...it smells more like...like some kind of animal or something.' Kiba shook his head and looked up at blond haired ninja. "...Naruto? Is that you...?" Kiba asked, sounding hopeful. A smile came upon his features. "It's me, Kiba!"

The young man in question did not reply, just stood there, silent.

"Naruto...?"

"...Answer me damnit!" Kiba yelled, becoming angry. "At least tell me you're not him!"

Naruto ignored the question and instead formed a seal. "_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_." An identical masked clone appeared beside Naruto in a puff of smoke.

"Naruto's favorite move..." Kiba whispered. "Fine! If you won't tell me who you are," he took out two pills, "I'll make you tell me! C'mon Akamaru!" Then popped one in Akamaru's mouth and one into his own. The change was near instant. Akamaru grew slightly in size and his fur became a reddish burgundy while Kiba's pupils dilated. Immediately after, Akamaru transformed and took the form of Kiba. Both pulled back their arms simaltaneously and charged up. "_Gatsuuga_!"

The Narutos leapt forward to meet the two Kibas and they collided in midair. Kiba clenched his teeth tight as he struggled to fend off Naruto. He quickly glanced over to his left to see if Akamaru had disposed of the clone, but what he found amazed him. The clone was physically blocking attacks but not disappearing after getting hit. "Wh-what the!" The clone matched each of Akamaru's slashes and then countered, delivering a fierce kick into Akamaru's chest. The dog smacked into the ground causing him to revert back to its normal form. Naruto took advantage of Kiba's distracted attention and managed to get a strike in past his defenses. Kiba reeled back as he took a fierce punch into his jaw and barely managed to land on his feet.

'What the hell kind of clone is that?' Kiba thought, wiping the blood from his lip. 'Normally clones can't take much damage before vanishing but Naruto's was exchanging blow for blow with Akamaru! What's going on?'

While Kiba was contemplating this, Naruto gestured to his clone. The clone nodded and charged at the two while Naruto quickly formed a sequence of seals. "_Doton: Doryuu Kasui_!" Naruto called out, and stamped his foot onto the ground. The ground beneath Kiba and Akamaru transformed into a gigantic spike that nearly pierced both of the them but they were quick enough to avoid it. However, Kiba soon found himself faced with Naruto's clone and could not avoid his attack.

'Damn!' Kiba thought.

The battle progressed with Naruto clearly having the upper hand. In terms of straight forward taijutsu, the two were easily outmatched for two reasons. Not only were the Narutos physically faster, but they also displayed in incredible amount of teamwork that even surpassed he and Akamaru. It was as if they were of one mind but two bodies. Although they didn't fair well in close combat, they didn't dare go out into the distance because the Narutos would take advantage of the range to use their vast assortment of ninjutsus.

Kiba, on one knee, breathed heavily. 'This isn't good...' Beside him, Akamaru began barking angrily. Kiba clenched his teeth and replied, "I know! I know...if we don't go all out then we're..." Kiba glanced at Naruto who calmly stared back. 'I still don't know if you're really Naruto or not but you leave me no choice!'

Standing up, Kiba got into a fighting stance. "Let's do it Akamaru!" His canine barked in acknowledgement and the two leapt up into the air. '_Inuzuka Ryuu Jinjuu Henge_!' Concentrating his chakra, he focused it into a fine stream that began to mix into Akamaru's own. '_Soutourou_!'

Naruto carefully studied the drooling, gigantic beast before him, analyzing his next move. Close combat was now out of the option as the two headed wolf was nearly four times his size and probably easily out matched him in strength. He had no idea how fast this newly transformed Kiba was.

Naruto bit into his thumb, drawing blood.

'A summoning jutsu? I don't think so!' Soutourou quickly turned into a vicious spinning whirlwind, tearing up the ground beneath, and shot off towards the Narutos. '_Garouga_!'

Naruto's eyes widened as he and his clone found themselves nearly face to face with the spinning chakra of Soutourou before they could even react. 'Wha...!'

Soutourou pummeled into Naruto's clone, instantly obliterating him into a puff of smoke. 'Tch, wrong one! We should of marked the real one...one more time Akamaru!

The enourmous spinning whirlwind raced at Naruto at a frightening speed, but he had already formed a series of seals. "_Doton: Doryuu Heki_!" he shouted, smashing his palms onto the ground. A towering earth wall rose up in front of Naruto as a result, matching the wolf beast in height.

'That won't stop us!' Soutourou met the wall and pierced through it like a drill with little resistance. The wall shattered into pieces, revealing a shocked Naruto. 'It's over!' Kiba thought.

Though Naruto tried as best he could to dodge, he was still caught in the wide range of the garouga. The razor sharp whirlwinds tore into the flesh of his lower abdomen, spewing blood everywhere. Landing, the corners of Soutourou's monstrous mouth twitched upwards into a victorious smirk as they looked at the result of their attack. 'Even an indirect hit from the garouga can still do incredible damage.' Naruto, struggling to stand, was gasping for air while he clutched his bloody, torn up wound. Kiba and Akamaru transformed out of the Soutourou form and back to normal.

"Give it up. It's over," Kiba stated, walking over to Naruto. "Now tell me if you're Naruto!"

A shadow covered Naruto's face as he looked down towards the ground, winded and injured. "...What does it matter if I am or not?"

"Huh? What the hell are you talking about idiot!" Kiba shouted. "If you are, then we shouldn't be fighting! We're both from Konoha and we Konoha ninja always look out for each other! Like that time the five of us went out to get Sasuke back, don't you remember?"

Naruto's breath slowed, calming. "I do..."

"Then why are you still fighting me!" Kiba yelled out, angry.

"...Don't use that Konoha excuse."

"Eh? Why?"

A chuckle suddenly erupted out of Naruto, startling Kiba. "Because..." Licking the blood from his lip, he slowly looked up into Kiba's eyes with a piercing glare. "...I..." His mouth formed into a dark smile. "..._hate_...Konoha."

"Wh-What?" Kiba said, stunned. 'This...this isn't the Naruto I knew.'

"Konoha...they've always despised and hated me. Did you know I was kidnapped before when I was a kid?" Naruto didn't wait for Kiba to answer. "Or did you know one of more caretakers tried to strangle me in my sleep? Or that I used to be bullied and beat up? At that time, I didn't know why I all this was happening to me but I know why now of course. I never belonged in Konoha. Do you think they would have sent ninjas to rescue me, had I left the village like Sasuke, their precious Uchiha genius?"

"Of course!"

"Bullshit," Naruto coldly replied. "They would have sent ninjas for me alright; a good excuse to get rid of a dangerous demon like me."

"No way! Godaime would have sent a rescue team for sure!" Kiba argued.

"And they would have killed me anyways!"

"Well what about us? What about me, Shikamaru, Neji, and Chouji? What about your old team, Sasuke and Sakura? Do you hate us too? Weren't we your friends?"

_Is this for real? You've been at the academy for three years and you still can't transform properly?_

_Hahahaha!_

_You all just watch...I'm going to the Hokage one day!_

_Are you stupid? You? Hokage?_

_Hahaha!_

"Friends...? OF COURSE YOU WEREN'T MY FRIENDS!" He cried out furiously, causing Kiba to unconciously take a step back. Emotions long buried rose up from the depths of his mind. Anger, hatred, despair...the three emotions that had helped motivate him to become stronger over the last five years. "You of all people should know that. Don't lie to me, you never once thought of me as your friend," he spat venomously. "Back at the academy, you ridiculed me along with everyone else. It was only when I beat you did your view of me change...but even then I was just someone to defeat so you could have your pride back. A rival at best, but never a friend!"

"You got your answer. I am Naruto...but you'll never live to tell anyone! _Jibakukage Kougeki_!" The characters for 'suicide' appeared on Narutos forehead, glowing a crimson light. He rushed into Kiba, hands in a seal, with a sickening grin on his face.

"WHAT?" Kiba's eyes widened, immediately realizing what was about to happen.

_"See you in hell."_

* * *

Kankuro coughed uncomfortably. The silence between the three family members was rather unsettling. Gaara's reunion with Kankuro had been awkward at best with no tears of happiness nor heartwarming welcomings. An gasp of shock at first, a nervous 'Yo', and then came the undeniable hint of fear visible in Kankuro's eyes when he looked at Gaara. 

Gaara looked away, sighing. 'I suppose this is what I should have expected. He's lived his entire life in fear of me, why would that change now?'

"Oi, Temari, are you sure we can trust that kid Naruto to do it by himself?" Kankuro asked, completely avoiding looking in Gaara's direction.

Temari shrugged. "I'm not sure..."

"He will do it. Naruto will come back with two emeralds for us," Gaara stated in tone that left no room for arguement.

Kankuro laughed nervously. "Um, yeah, of course Gaara..."

Gaara's brows furrowed. After a moment, he stood up from his seat. "Going for a walk...I'll be back."

"Okay," Temari said.

Kankuro and Temari watched Gaara walk off until he no longer in sight.

Temari immediately turned to Kankuro. "What's with you Kankuro! Why are you acting so weird!"

"Me, the weird one!" Kankuro replied with an incredulous look. "Well excuse me if I can't just welcome back our psycho brother like nothing happened!"

"He's not psycho! Just...misunderstood."

Kankuro rolled his eyes. "Right, whatever."

Temari walked up to Kankuro and grabbed his collar angrily. "Look you jackass, he's changed! He admits that he was a little messed up back then and we didn't exactly help by being a 'caring' family."

"A little! Temari, he killed our uncle when he was like six years old!"

Temari narrowed her eyes. "You know that Gaara was only defending himself...Kankuro, what's really going on? Even back then you never acted this scared of Gaara."

Kankuro looked away uncomfortably, avoiding Temari's interrogating eyes. "..."

"Well?"

"I...Temari, it's like staring at a damn ghost every time I see him! Do you know how many times I wished he would just die and never come back back then?" Kankuro asked. "And then one day he just vanishes. My wish came true. Temari, what was first reaction when they told us Gaara had been kidnapped? And don't bullshit me."

Temari released his collar and gazed away, ashamed. "Um...confused at first...then...maybe just a little happy after that."

"Exactly! And the first thing I thought when Gaara showed up again was that he had come back to kill me, as if he knew that I had wished he was dead!" Kankuro finished, exasperated. "Hell, how do I know he still won't? We should get the hell out of here before he-"

"Kankuro!" Temari cut in. "I told you, he's changed. I can tell. We still have a mission to do, to represent Sand and achieve jounin rank, and I'm staying here to complete it."

"But you heard Gaara's mission! They're going to ruin the exam anyways and it's damned obvious that it's going to be more than just that. It's just like five years ago all over again when we attacked Konoha!"

"I know...but I'm not just going to get up and run away just like that." Temari crossed her arms. "If you want to run, go ahead, I won't stop you. But I'm staying here, with Gaara, the brother I haven't seen in five years."

"God damnit Temari!" Kankuro shouted angrily. "Fine! If you want to stick around to see if he kills you then see if I care! 'Cause I don't! I'm out of here." With that, Kankuro took off into the forest and vanished.

Temari stared in Kankuro's direction with sad eyes. "Kankuro..."

She sat in silence, alone, for a long while. Some brush near her started shuffling suddenly, catching her attention. "Kankuro?"

It was not Kankuro that revealed himself, but Gaara who emerged from the bushes.

"O-Oh...it's you Gaara." As she saw Gaara looking around the area, obviously searching for Kankuro, she looked towards the ground. "Um, Kankuro...he...he left. I don't think he's coming back."

"...I know."

Temari looked up, surprised and shocked. "Y-You mean you heard us talking?"

Gaara looked off into the distance. "No...I just figured he would do something like that. It was obvious from the way he looked at me."

"Oh...Gaara, I'm sorry," Temari murmured apolegetically.

He shook his head. "I understand. It's better this way. He won't get involved now."

"Gaara..." Temari clenched her fist, glaring in the last direction Kankuro was, and thought, 'Damn it Kankuro...'

* * *

Godaime - 5th Hokage 

(Jutsu Index)

_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_ - Shadow Clone Skill  
_Gatsuuga _- Dual Piercing Fang  
_Inuzuka Ryuu Jinjuu Henge: Soutourou_ - Human-Creature Combination Transformation: Double-Headed Wolf  
_Garouga_ - Double Wolf Fang  
_Doton: Doryuu Heki_ - Earth Element: Earth Rising Wall

(Original Jutsus)

_Doton: Doryuu Kasui_ - Earth Element: Earth Rising Spike  
_Jibakukage Kougeki_ - Suicide Shadow Bomb Attack

* * *

A/N: I hope the battles turned out okay. So far I think I've managed. Although I can imagine fights easily, writting them is a whole other story. I don't like doing descriptions and I'm not very good at writting them so please forgive me if you see me using an adjective multiple times in the same scene. 

Though it might seem as if Naruto doesn't seem as strong as he should be even after everything he's been through, there is a reason for that but that's for later chapters. I mentioned part of it in the last chapter, but I will go into more depth later on.


	10. Anxious Hearts

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 9:  
_ Anxious Hearts_

* * *

'Huh...?' 

'What happened...?'

The eyes of Kiba opened gradually as he awoke. "Wha..." As he oriented himself, the memories of just moments before came to in a flash, causing his expression to become solemn. "That's right...Naruto...he..."

_"You got your answer. I am Naruto...but you'll never live to tell anyone! Jibakukage Kougeki!" The characters for 'suicide' appeared on Narutos forehead, glowing a crimson light. He rushed into Kiba, hands in a seal, with a sickening grin on his face._

_"WHAT?" Kiba's eyes widened, immediately realizing what was about to happen._

_"See you in hell."_

_A grand explosion of fire and light lit up the surrounding area._

"Wait, then does mean that I'm dead?" Kiba exclaimed. He quickly felt himself, checking for any injuries. He ran his hand over his chest and flinched. "Ouch!" He looked at his hand and saw that it was covered in blood and black ash. "...I'm alive? But how...? There's no way I could have survived that explosion from that close up!"

Kiba stood up and looked around. His eyes came upon Akamaru, lying on the ground with his fur soaked in blood. "AKAMARU!"

He ran over to his canine. The dog was in horrible shaped, his breath a mere wheeze and his body heavy damaged. Kiba knelt down and cradled Akamaru's head in his arms. "Y-You jumped in front of me at the last second didn't you boy?" Akamaru's eyes were closed and he was barely remaining concious.

'This is bad!' Kiba thought, looking at the wound on Akamaru with slight panic. 'These are third degree burns and it goes in deep! If I don't do something quick, Akamaru will...'

"I have to hand it to you, that dog is loyal isn't he?"

Kiba's eyes widened at the sound of the voice. "No...it can't be..." Slowly, he turned around and stared at the source of the voice with shocked eyes that refused to believe the reality in front of them. "I SAW YOU DIE!"

Naruto stood before Kiba with only the scratches from the _tsuuga _and Akamaru's bite marring his body. Other than that, he appeared to be in far better shape than Kiba. "You saw my shadow clone die."

"What? That's impossible! We destroyed the clone!"

"You did," Naruto agreed. "But I made another one. After I used the _doryuu heki,_ I made another clone from behind the wall and hid. Still, that technique has incredible range." Naruto's hand went up to his heavily battered mask, caused by the _garouga_, and removed it, revealing a bloodthirsty smile.

For the first time, Kiba saw Naruto unmasked and was faced with the haunting realization that this truly was Naruto, no matter how much he wished it wasn't.

"It's too bad though...looks like Akamaru's courageous act was all for nothing."

"You...YOU BASTARD! I'LL KILL YOU FOR HURTING AKAMARU!" Kiba screamed, making a jump at Naruto. Naruto started to leap forward to meet Kiba but just out of the corner of his eye, he saw a kunai flying straight at him from the side and had to dodge.

"Kiba-kun! Are you alright?"

Kiba turned to the familiar voice, surprised. "H-Hinata?"

There Hinata was, standing before Naruto just as he remembered. Her soft, timid features apparent though mixed with a quiet, yet prominent fierceness caused by the heat of battle. Her body had evolved into the form of an athletic, but petite young woman. Her dark blue hair was also longer and now draped down her back.

Kiba quickly whipped around to see what Naruto's reaction was but he had already covered his face in an emotionless mask, the arrogant grin gone.

"K-Kiba-kun?"

"Oh, y-yeah, I'm fine," Kiba said, somewhat nervous and distracted. He couldn't help but think on what Naruto was going to do. Would he reveal himself to Hinata? 'What are you going to do...Naruto...'

Hinata took a moment to glanced at the enemy ninja. The young man wasn't looking in her direction at all for some reason. She blinked in confusion when realized that her heart had abruptly quickened its pace. '...W-Why...is my hearting beating so fast?' Could it be that she couldn't help but tremble at the incredible power she felt emitting from the unknown ninja? It was true that an enourmous power radiated about him like a violent torrent, a force that had momentarily overwhelmed her when she first stepped onto the battlefield. The strength was animalistic, a mysterious beastial chakra that she had never felt before; not even from Kiba, a ninja who was very much in touch with his inner beast. For some reason though, a part of her told her that it wasn't fear that was causing the odd sensation, making her body tremble. It was something different. There was something very nostalgic about this unknown ninja. Looking at his face, Hinata was pretty sure that she had never seen him before...or had she? Kiba's voice snapped her out of her daze.

"Hinata! Can you please help save Akamaru! He's injured badly, I don't know what to do!"

Hinata's eyes found Akamaru's motionless body and gasped. She quickly ran over and began treating the dog's injuries. "Oh no! What happened to him?"

Kiba glared at Naruto hatefully. "It's this bastard's fault! I'm gonna kill him!" he shouted out, forming a seal.

"_Gijyuu Ninpou: Mouko Tsume no Jutsu!" _An aura of chakra appeared around Kiba's claw-like hands. With a burst of speed, he charged at Naruto and struck at his face. Naruto hopped backwards and quite easily dodged by a lengthy distance. Naruto opened his mouth to say something, but stopped, surprised, and realized something. On his left cheek, a two inch long cut had appeared, deep enough to draw a small amount of blood.

'But I was at least two feet away from him...how...?' Naruto thought as he dodged another slash. While retreating backwards, Naruto peered behind Kiba at the spot he had just been. He noticed that the tree that had been near him was covered in slash marks. This time he was sure that he wasn't at all close enough to that tree for Kiba's slashes to be marked so deeply in the bark.

'I get it...his claws must be wrapped in an invisible chakra. The chakra blades stretch much longer than what the visible aura actually shows,' Naruto thought. In other words, a clean swipe from even a medium distance could possibly do damage to him if he wasn't careful.

Naruto cast a quick glance at Hinata, who was busy tending to Akamaru, then back to Kiba. 'Hinata...'

* * *

Anko dreamt. 

_"Orochimaru-sama!"_

_The young man in question looked up from his book and glanced over his shoulder to the girl bouncing his way. "Hm?"_

_"Can you teach me a jutsu today?" the young girl asked, her eyes wide with hope and plee._

_"I'm afraid not, I'm rather busy."_

She twisted in her feverish sleep, sweat dripping down the sides of her forehead. 'Why...am I dreaming of this...'

_"Awww, c'mon Orochimaru-sama!"_

_"Maybe tomorrow..."_

_"Pleaaaaaase!"_

_"For now, go study on your own. You don't need my help."_

_"B-But..."_

_Orochimaru sighed, rubbing his brow in slight irritation. The girl was become a bother as of late, interrupting him during nearly all his free time. She had even discovered where he lived somehow. "Anko, it's time you stop being so pampered. If you're always relying on someone then you'll never accomplish anything on your own. You'll never get stronger."_

_The girl flinched slightly, but argued, "But Kayashi-sensei says that you're supposed to rely on your teammate and your teammate relies on you. 'Together, you are each other's strength. That's what makes Konoha ninjas strong,' he said."_

_Orochimaru narrowed his eyes. "That is an excuse for the weak. If you are strong, you don't need to rely on anyone. Konoha ninjas are not strong...they are weak."_

_"Wh-What?"_

_"...Nothing. Forget what I said," Orochimaru said with a shake of his head. "I was merely talking to myself."_

_"N-No..." Anko said, hesitantly at first, then more firmly. "I-I won't forget! I understand what you're saying Orochimaru-sama. If...if we're always relying on someone, then what are we gonna do when we're alone! I believe in anything Orochimaru-sama says!"_

_Orochimaru blinked at the girl's statement. 'Interesting...' he thought. A smile slowly creeped up onto his features. "You catch on quickly. Very well, as a reward, I will teach you a jutsu. It is a very strong jutsu, but also very dangerous to learn. Are you prepared?"_

_"Of course Orochimaru-sama!"_

_"Good. First, you..."_

_The next day, Orochimaru sat in the same spot, quietly studying on numerous things._

_"...O-Orochimaru...sama..."_

_Orochimaru looked up and was genuinely surprised to see Anko standing there in front him. She was battered, covered in blood, and clutching an arm that was twisted in an awkward, unnatural position. 'She's alive?'_

_"I-I...did it..." she managed to get out before falling to the ground._

_'That's...that's impossible. There's no way she could have...' Orochimaru made his way over to fallen girl and knelt down beside her. _

_Anko's half-open eyes beamed up at him. "I-I'm going to become strong...l-like Orochimaru-sama...no matter what..." She coughed, blood spraying everywhere. "I-I'll never...be helpless...again..."_

Anko eyes cracked open. "Wha..." she said groggily in a dazed, almost drugged like state. She tried to sit up but her body refused to do so. "What's happening to me...?" With all her strength, she lifted up her hand that seemed to weigh a hundred pounds heavier. Her eyes widened with shock when she saw that her entire arm was covered in the curved black flame markings of the Heaven Seal. The flames glowed with a fluorescent purple haze and the shapes were beginning to twist and morph into something else. Almost fearfully, she twisted her to head to examine her cursed seal on the nape of the neck. "I-It's...changing!" she gasped. The three, curved tear-like marking were now thinner, long diamond shapes and straight.

"What...did he do to me...?" she croaked. A sudden surge of pain surged throughout her body, causing her to scream out in agony. Unable to take the pain any longer, she slipped back into unconciousness.

Some distance away, a pair of cool, calculating eyes watched.

* * *

Hinata stared intently at her handiwork on Akamaru with a critical eye. After a long moment, she let out the breath she hadn't know she was holding and wiped the sweat from her brow. 'With this, hopefully, Akamaru will pull through...' Her task complete, she focused her attention to the two ninjas fighting. Kiba's expression worried her. Something had happened between Kiba and this ninja but she couldn't figure out what. 'Who is he...?' 

She shook her head. Now was not the time to wondering about such things, her teammate needed her help! Hinata waited until Naruto's back was turned to her then charged in, armed in the Jyuuken stance. She struck at Naruto, but he had somehow caught her presence and expected the attack, allowing him to easily swat the blow aside. He was about to turn on Hinata, but Kiba quickly got in his face.

"You're opponent is me!" Kiba yelled out and slashed in between Hinata and Naruto. Naruto retreated a few hops back and peered his two opponents.

"Hinata, stay out of this!" Kiba said to her, coming off more angry that he had meant to.

"B-But..."

His eyes softened slightly. "Please Hinata, leave him to me. This guy...he's really dangerous. I don't want you getting hurt," he said, but thought, 'That's an excuse...please Hinata, don't get involved.'

Hinata looked like she was about to say something but thought otherwise and nodded. 'This is the first time I have ever seen Kiba-kun so serious,' she thought.

"Is...Is Akamaru going to be alright?" Kiba ask hesitantly.

Hinata bit her lower lip. "Um, I've done all I can, b-but...I think so. For now." It was true that she prolonged an immediate death, but what she didn't want to tell him was that it was about a 50/50 chance of his survival through the night. He didn't need to know that right now, it would distract him from the fight and make him lose focus.

"Are you sure you're going to be alright? This man is..." She glanced at him and was surprised see him looking at her for the first time. Their eyes made contact. For a split second, Hinata saw past his invisible mask and a gate opened.

Pain, sadness, suffering. That is what Hinata saw. They were mixed with other, more complex feelings that Hinata didn't know what to quite make of. There were so many layers, so many different facets, in the depths of this man's eyes. Eyes that seemed to tell her he was not quite a man, but more like a boy forced to grow up, so much like someone she knew. Lightning seemed strike her at that moment and it all came together. Her first assumptions were true. She had not met this boy before. Not this side of him.

Naruto's eyes widened. 'She knows!'

"_Naruto-kun_?" Hinata cried out, surprising Kiba.

A variety of emotions crossed Hinata's features all at once. Shock became confusion, confusion turned to hopefulness, and finally that hope became a hesitant joy. "I-It is you, isn't it Naruto-kun?"

Naruto tried to control his emotions, forcing himself to steel his expression.

She slowly, almost shyly made her way to Naruto with timid steps and an anxious heart. She stopped when she was just a few feet in front of him. "Are you...Naruto?"

Naruto looked Hinata back in the eyes, unable to break his gaze away for she held it down with a wide-eyed, helpless expression that wrung at his heart. Finding it impossible to keep up the facade, his chiseled, stone 'mask' vanished completely, exposing an anxious, uncertain expression. "I...I am."

A full fledged smile broke out and Hinata threw her arms around Naruto's neck, bringing him into a fierce hug while tears flowed freely down her cheeks. "We thought you were dead!" In her heartfelt joy, her mind forgot the tentative situation they were in.

It took a moment before Naruto returned the embrace, his arms wrapping around the small of her back and curling around her hair. His expression remained the same though, still unsure of what to do. After all, the context for their meeting was not the best of circumstances. "Hinata...chan..."

'Why am I losing control like this?' Naruto thought as hugged her. 'This isn't like me. I...I didn't even know her that well.' But he could not ignore the feelings that were surfacing out of the depths of his heart, feelings that he had locked away in order to do what he must to become stronger. A part of him answered. 'Because she was you're only real friend.'

Hinata, the only person that never once looked down at him, that never saw him as anything except as just himself. She even told him that she admired him. Just that was enough for her to steal a place in his heart without even him knowing it.

Kiba watched the two with wavering eyes, wishing he could look away for his chest wrenched painfully at the sight. "Hinata..." he whispered.

As her senses gradually returned to her, Hinata let go of Naruto and the reality of the situation was forced upon her. Her smile faded into a worried frown. "W-Why were you fighting Kiba-kun? Why did you hurt Akamaru?"

Naruto closed his eyes for a moment, looking away, before staring back at Hinata with a sad gaze. "Hinata...I'm not the Naruto you once knew."

"Wh-What?"

"Naruto Uzumaki of Konoha is gone and he can't ever come back. I'm Naruto of Akatsuki now, enemy to Konoha."

Hinata shook her head, confused and slightly frightened by what he was implicating. "I don't understand. What do you mean, Naruto-kun?"

"I can't be your friend anymore, Hinata. I'm sorry," he said in a strained tone.

"No, I...I don't understand! Why!" she cried out. "Can't you just come back and be part of Konoha again? There are so many people that miss you!"

"I can't! Besides, that's just it Hinata. There _aren't_ people that miss me. You're the only one!" he shouted back, full of emotion. "I don't _want _to come back...I hate Konoha."

Hinata stared intently into Naruto's eyes. "Do you really think that, Naruto-kun? All the people you grew up with, you're dream, everything...you can't mean that Naruto-kun!"

"I..." He thought hard, back to his childhood memories - the beatings, the stares, the oppression - and tried to grasp upon them for strength, but those were not the memories that came to him. He saw himself at a young age standing in the hall with three other children. A was teacher looking down at them, angry and disapprovingly. It was Iruka and he was berating them for not paying attention in class. The children, Naruto, Shikamaru, Chouji, and Kiba, all listened half-heartedly with bored, impatient expressions. Finally, Naruto couldn't take it anymore and he jumped out the window while sticking his tongue out at Iruka. The others grinned and followed suite with Iruka hot on their tails. He yelled his lungs out, commanding them to stop, but the children simply laughed to each other and kept on running.

"I-" Naruto began to speak but was cut off as a kunai whipped by him, surprising all three, Kiba included.

"Step away from him Hinata."

They looked up into the trees to see two ANBU starring down at them. One was unmasked.

Kiba and Hinata both immediately recognized the unmasked ANBU. "Shino!"

* * *

(Original Jutsus) 

_Gijyuu Ninpou: Mouko Tsume no Jutsu - _Beast Mimicry Ninja Technique: Fierce Tiger Claw  
_Jibakukage Kougeki - _Suicide Shadow Bomb Attack

* * *

A/N: Surprised? I hope so, I love surprises and plot twists. That's mainly why I don't answer a lot of the questions I see in reviews. It's not that I'm ignoring them, it's just that most of them are either going to be answered in a couple chapters or it will spoil something. By the way, I _reaaallllly_ appreciate everyone who's read this story and submitted a review! Thanks! 

This still isn't a Naru/Hina pairing for sure. Try not to assume anything just yet other than that Hinata is a crucial part of Naruto's character development and evolution.


	11. Chosen Path

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 10:  
_Chosen Path_

* * *

"Step away from him Hinata." 

They looked up into the trees to see two ANBU staring down at them. One was unmasked.

Kiba and Hinata both immediately recognized the unmasked ANBU. "Shino?"

"Where did you come from? How come you're here?" Kiba asked.

"We were patrolling the area to make sure no one cheated during the exam when we found you two fighting," Shino stated. He gazed at Naruto who returned it with an even stare. "Naruto Uzumaki, former ninja of Konoha, once thought dead five years ago. Please accompany us to the Hokage's office."

"...Why?"

"Because you are suppose to be dead," he replied in a deadtone. "However, since you are not, you are technically considered a missing ninja who are usually considered kill-on-sight. Your situation is complex and should be brought to the attention of the Hokage. Please accompany us to the admistration office."

"...No."

His ANBU companion, who wore a cat mask, stepped forward angrily, kunai in hand. "Who do you think you are! This isn't a reques-"

Shino held up a hand in front the other ANBU, signaling him to stop his tirade. He stopped relunctantly, but continued to glare at Naruto, anger clearly etched into his body language. Naruto narrowed his eyes.

Shino spoke again. "Naruto, we will not harm you if you comply with us. We will only escort you to the administrative offices so the council can decide what to do with you."

The cat-mask ANBU appeared surprised by the offer. He leaned into Shino's ear, and whispered, "Captain, are you sure about this! He's a demon! Who knows what he'll do once he's there!"

"Quiet," Shino commanded harshly. He glanced back at Naruto and found him glaring angrily at the two of them, teeth bared. Naruto had heard everything as a result of his keen hearing.

"I appreciate the offer Shino but I'm going to have to politely refuse." Naruto said aloud. "Afterall, what difference is that going to make? They'll still kill me in the end after seeing what I've become." Naruto held up his hands and gestured towards his beast like traits. He knew the council well from his childhood days. They had 'taken care' of him during his younger years, if it could be called that. The council was the voice of Konoha so in other words, they despised him along with everyone else. Yes, he knew well enough that if he let himself be 'escorted' by the ANBU, they would discover that he had made a pact with Kyuubi and they would execute him, plain and simple.

"I knew it!" the cat-masked ANBU shouted. He whipped out a radio and said to it, "This is Cell 3! We need backup quickly from the nearest team-"

"Stop!" Shino said, angrily snatching the radio from the ANBU's hands.

"B-But Captain...!"

Shino quickly looked over to Naruto and saw that he was was complete tense with a vicious snare on his features. 'An escort is no longer possible...' he thought solemnly. Two more ANBU soon arrived on the scene surprisingly fast.

"What is it? What's wrong?" one of the new ANBU asked. The others noted the presence of Kiba, Hinata, and Naruto. One blinked as his eyes came to Naruto.

"That guy...who is that guy?"

"It's Kyuubi!" the cat-mask ANBU replied. "The bastard that killed my parents!"

"K-Kyuubi!" they gasped.

"I thought he was dead!"

"That demon killed my father too!"

"All of you, quiet." Shino watched Naruto with cautious eyes and saw that the damage had already been done. 'This is bad,' he thought.

Naruto clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. "Nothing's changed...I'll never be just Naruto to them..." he whispered. The young Akatsuki ninja began shaking his head, chuckling quietly to himself which then turned into full blown laughter. His audience tensed up at his crazed cackle.

Hinata looked at him with a worried gaze. "Naruto-kun...?" She made a step towards him but Kiba grabbed her sleeve and pulled her back. She looked at Kiba and saw that he was shaking his head 'no' at her.

"Actually Shino, I changed my mind," Naruto said, a smile on his face. "I'll go with you back to Konoha, to see the council. I have a surprise for them. If they hated me when Kyuubi sealed, how much more would they hate me after I summon him huh?"

Everyone gasped at the implication. Since Naruto had been thought dead, it became common knowledge that Naruto had been the container for Kyuubi.

"Y-You monster! I'll kill you!"

One of the ANBU leapt at Naruto, soon followed by the other two ANBU.

Before they reached him, Naruto executed a series of seals, a smirk still on his face. "_Maton: Kitsune-bi no Jutsu!" _An enormous firestorm exploded from Naruto, completely engulfing the three ANBU in the blazing inferno. Shino, Kiba, and Hinata all stared in amazement at the jutsu from a distance for even they could feel the deadly heat. The ANBU were blown away to the ground from the force of the explosion and they screamed in agony as the fire ate at their skin.

'_Maton? _Demon Element? What power!' Kiba thought as he shielded himself with his arms.

As Shino watched his comrades, his eyes narrowed as he made a realization. 'Wait, the bugs are still...'

Just as quickly as the flames appeared, the fire abruptly vanished without a trace, as if it had never started. The three masked ANBU stopped their screaming and looked around, confused.

"Genjutsu!" they exclaimed.

The Konoha ninja hastily reoriented themselves and turned to Naruto to see that he had already summoned three shadow clones. All four of the Narutos charged at Shino and his ANBU squad.

"Split up into your teams!" Shino commanded to them. They nodded, and the ANBU split up into two pairs as they defended against the Narutos. The Narutos easily outmatched the ANBU in taijutsu and it took them everything they had to defend themselves, leaving no room for counter attacks.

"Ahh!" one of the ANBU cried out in pain suddenly, falling to the ground, which left him completely defenseless against one of Naruto's shadow clone.

The bird-masked ANBU saw this and tried to help him. "_Katon: Ji-_gaaah!A piercing shock surged throughout his body, halting him in mid jutsu as soon as he called upon his chakra.

The real Naruto, who was facing Shino at the moment, glanced at the two ANBU, a victorious glint in his eyes. "That jutsu isn't any normal genjutsu. At close range, it temporarily scars your chakra points, resulting in incredible pain and paralyzing you if you try to summon your chakra."

While the two ANBU were left immobile, the shadow clones took advantage of the situation and simultaneously called out "_Katon: Hiyou Hidama no Jutsu!"_ The balls of fire exploded upon impact, igniting the helpless ninjas into flames. The Naruto clones followed up on the jutsu and threw a volley of kunais at the ninjas, impaling them repeatedly. The two writhed on the ground like worms until their suffering slowly came to an end and fell limp, bodies still aflame. The surviving Konoha ninja stared in horror at the agonizing deaths of the two ANBU. Kiba, Hinata, and Shino were all thinking the same thing at that moment: Naruto really was serious. He was willing to kill a Konoha ninja.

"Koji, regroup," Shino called the other ANBU. The cat-masked ANBU nodded and retreated to him.

'He really did it...' Kiba thought, surprised. He glanced over to Hinata and saw that she was clutching her chest and staring at Naruto with sad eyes. 'Damn it Naruto! Can't you see that hurting Hinata! If you can't...then I'll make you!'

"N-Naruto-kun..." A grunt near her caught Hinata's attention. Kiba, who had his hand on a thick, red spot on his jacket, was about to leap into the battlefield. "K-Kiba-kun! You're hurt!" She rushed over to him.

"I-It's nothing...just a little scratch Naruto gave me," Kiba said, flashing a grin at her. Mentally, he thought on a grim note, 'Actually it hurts like hell. It's taking me everything I got, plus another soldier pill, to keep me from falling to the floor.'

Hinata lifted Kiba's hand, examining the wound. "T-This is bad! You need to lie down!"

Kiba shook his head. "I can't. Not now." He glanced at the fight, then back at Hinata. "Hinata, I'm...I'm going to stop Naruto." Before she could say anything, he held up a finger, shushing her. "I don't know if I can, but I'm sure as hell not going to give up. I'm going to give it everything I got to help Shino stop Naruto before its too late!" He gave her another smile before rushing head first into the fray. "_Gijyuu Ninpou: Mouko Tsume no Jutsu!"_

Hinata gazed at the battle with conflicting emotions. On one hand, she wanted cheer on her former teammates and join them in battle, but on the other...the person they were fighting was Naruto. 'What should I do...? Shino-kun...Kiba-kun...Naruto-kun...'

* * *

"You look worried." 

Gaara started at Temari, surprised that his emotions were so apparent. It took him a moment to gather his thoughts into words. "Naruto...he may be in trouble."

Temari's brow furrowed. "I knew we shouldn't of went with his plan! Going off by himself to get _two_ emeralds is too reckless!"

Gaara shook his head. "It's not that. It's just...at the time I didn't think about it, but right now, Naruto can only fight at a third of his power."

"What! What do you mean?"

"He has the _Kagereikon Katsu no Jutsu _active," Gaara began explaining. "It's a skill that only people with two different chakras can do, like Naruto. An enhanced version of the _Kage Bunshin _technique, it allows you to split your chakra into a completely seperate body, on the molecular level, for long periods of time. But since his chakra is split, that also means none of the bodies can use their full power. Normally that isn't a problem because they usually stay together, but we lost the shadow some time before the jounin exam started. Hopefully the shadow is still alive, but if he's dead, it will take Naruto a couple days to fully regain his power."

Temari contemplated all of this with thoughtful expression. "What should we do then?"

'If we don't pass the first part of the exam, completing the mission will become difficult,' he thought. Gaara looked off north, in the direction of the emerald hill. 'Naruto, what were you thinking when you went off alone you idiot? You must have known your limitations.' Gaara shook his head to himself. 'I should have known better. Although he said otherwise, coming back to Konoha has affected him after all. Still...he's been waiting five years for this day, I don't believe that he will let anything stop him after getting this far.' He turned to Temari. "...We wait. There's nothing else we can do. And also..."

Gaara reached behind him to pull off the cork of his oversized gourd and peered into the dense forest with a dangerous glint. "Five teams have passed us and the sixth is approaching quickly."

* * *

The ANBU captain glanced at his allies. Kiba was currently pulling himself out of a pile of rumble while Koji had become paralyzed after touching his chakra and was trying to shake himself free. Turning to Naruto, Shino pulled out a couple of white balls that were covered in an odd glue, and flung them at him. Naruto raised an eyebrow when the balls came no where near him, but instead stuck themselves to the trees around him. 

"_Kokuen Jougo no Jutsu_!" Shino yelled out and smacked his hands together. The balls exploded, letting out a black swarm of insects that ambushed Naruto and encased him in a black pile.

"_Bouseki Tsume!" _Naruto came spinning out upwards, arms extended, as he immediately countered and dispersed the bugs.

Shino continued his attack, launching three more projectiles attached with explosive seals at the Akatsuki ninja. Naruto leapt off to the side, attempting to dodge, but was shocked when they objects curved in midair, tracing his movement.

Naruto peered closer at the objects and discovered that the projectiles were actually insects. Acting quickly, he threw a bundle of shuriken at the bugs. The ninja stars sliced through them before they could reach him and three explosions boomed seconds later, forcing Naruto to cover behind a tree. He let out a slow breath and took the moment to recover. His ear twitched suddenly at a soft buzzing sound. 'They're coming right at me!' Naruto hastily jumped away from his hiding spot that exploded just half a breath later.

"You cannot hide from the _Hotaru Bakudan_," Shino commented. "The insects are attracted to the scent emitting from the bug I planted on you."

"Tch," Naruto scoffed to himself. He leapt out from his cover and dove straight at Shino, his claws out. "Who said anything about hiding!" With a battle cry, Naruto shoved his claw into the stunned Shino's stomach.

"Shino!" Hinata and Kiba yelled out.

Surprisingly, Shino did not utter a single cry of pain. Instead, he grabbed onto Naruto's arm in a robotic motion and held it there. The illusion gave melted slightly, displaying Shino's stomach transformed into hundreds of tiny bugs that were all biting into Naruto's arm.

'A clone!' Frantically, he struggled to pull his arm out and slashed at Shino's face in order to get free. The slash ripped through Shino's flesh, revealing that his face was composed of a plethora of insects all compacted together. The genjutsu dispelled, Naruto destroyed the clone with a few more slashes. He held up his arm, touching the deep, purple bruises that encircled his skin, and flinched in pain.

"I would suggest you give up Naruto," Shino said to Naruto. "Those bugs poisonous. Though the poison is not normally deadly, from that many bites a normal person would die within less than an hour."

"Hmph. You don't really think I'd die from poison do you?" Naruto said, scoffing. He glanced at the bruise. Feeling had completely left it, making it numb from the elbow down, but he could still move it regardless. The power of Kyuubi's healing chakra was strong and he could feel it already combating with the parasites. 'I should be fine for now,' Naruto thought. 'The ANBU should be pulling out of it right about now...' He turned toward Koji.

"Haaaaa!" Koji screamed, breaking free of the paralyze at last. "I won't give up that eas-" A gurgle of blood from his own mouth cut off his words. Horrified, he looked down to see Naruto's claw piercing into his flesh. Naruto removed his claw from the ANBU's stomach, letting the man flop down to the ground, lifeless. His eyes rose to Kiba and Shino in a cold, predatory stare.

"Damn it!" Kiba cursed out.

"Nauto-kun, please stop it!" Hinata cried out.

'Hinata...you don't understand. Can't you see that it's not possible for me to do that?' Naruto thought sadly. 'I've come too far to go back now.' Over the course of the fight, Naruto's resolve had strengthened itself into a solid firmness. Demon, devil child, Kyuubi. Those words brought him back to the mindset he had trained in for the last five years. 'I am the weapon of Akatsuki now, I won't stop until Konoha feels my pain. I won't stop until _he_ is dead!' Naruto didn't look in her direction as he spoke up. "I told you Hinata, Konoha is my enemy now."

"Please, Naruto-kun! Stop before it's too late!"

"I can't...I won't."

"P-Please..." Tears slowly welled up in her eyes. Why couldn't he stop? Why wouldn't he? Why did Naruto change so much over the past five yeas, this man who had no hesitation or qualms to killing? What happened to those kind, soft sky blue eyes of his that always seemed to wash away all of her worries and doubts? She was unable to hold back the tears that began streaming down her cheeks. "N-Naruto-kun..."

Kiba's clenched his fist tightly, a furious anger boiling up within him as he saw Hinata breaking down. Blood began to fill his hand as his own claws pierced his flesh. "Naruto...you..." came out in a low growl. "I _will_ stop you...even if it kills me!"

Naruto didn't miss a beat. "Maybe I will."

The taunt was the last straw and something in Kiba finally snapped. "I'LL KILL YOU!" he screamed and charged at Naruto with a crazed look in his eyes. His claws were glowing with the chakra of the _Mouko Tsume no Jutsu_.

Naruto gazed solemnly at Kiba. 'This is the path I have chosen...there's no turning back now.' His expression became a vicious glare and he held out his palm. "_RASENGAN_!"

Shino watched the whirling sphere of chakra appear in Naruto's hand while Kiba rushed at him, blind with rage. Even from his vantage point, Shino could see that Kiba's movement was sluggish and predictable, the effects of Kiba's wounds glaringly apparent. 'Kiba you fool!' Shino started running at full speed, intending to intercept Kiba and Naruto before the worst happened.

"No...stop..." Hinata whispered, her eyes filled with dread and a dark, sickening ball forming in the pit of her stomach. With all her strength, Hinata cried out, "**_STOOOOP_**!"

* * *

**(Jutsu Index)**

_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu - _Shadow Clone Skill  
_Rasengan - _Rasengan  
_Kikai Bunshin no Jutsu - _Bug Clone Skill

**(Original Jutsus)**

_Katon: Hiyou Hidama no Jutsu__ - _Fire Element: Flying Fireball Skill  
_Kokuen Jougo no Jutsu - _Black Smoke Funnel Skill  
_Hotaru Bakudan - _Firefly Bomb  
_Bouseki Tsume - _Spinning Claw  
_Kagereikon Katsu no Jutsu - _Shadow Soul Split Skill  
_Maton: Kitsune-bi no Jutsu -_ Demon Element - Foxfire Skill  
_Gijyuu Ninpou: Mouko Tsume no Jutsu - _Beast Mimicry Ninja Technique: Fierce Tiger Claw

* * *

A/N: I had trouble with this chapter and I'm sure it shows. It went through a lot of revisions so, although it didn't quite turn out the way I wanted to, hopefully it still holds together. 


	12. Turmoil

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 11:  
_ Turmoil_

* * *

Shino watched the whirling sphere of chakra appear in Naruto's hand while Kiba rushed at him, blind with rage. Even from his vantage point, Shino could see that Kiba's movement was sluggish and predictable, the effects of Kiba's wounds glaringly apparent. 'Kiba you fool!' Shino started running at full speed, intending to intercept Kiba and Naruto before the worst happened. 

"No...stop..." Hinata whispered, her eyes filled with dread and a dark, sickening ball forming in the pit of her stomach. With all her strength, Hinata cried out, "STOOOOP!"

But the cry was muffled by the heat of the battle and only the enemy in front of them mattered. Kiba lunged at Naruto with a wild swing, but he ducked under Kiba's arm in a smooth motion, placing himself in a perfect pocket within his defenses. Kiba froze in fear and anticipation of the blow to come but it never came. Instead, he saw Naruto strafe right past him, straight into a surprised Shino's face. Before Shino had any time to react, Naruto shoved the raging sphere of chakra straight into Shino's stomach, forcing out a scream of pain. The ball tore into Shino for the most agonizing and painful three seconds he had ever experienced before vaulting him several meters into the air and finally crashing into the ground.

Kiba's stared at Shino's motionless body in horror. "No, Shino!"

"SHINO-KUN!" Hinata, tears in her eyes, quickly rushed over to the fallen ANBU captain and glanced at the shallow indent in his stomach. The large gash was dark red and, oddly, half of the blood seemed to be black, mixed with swirls of crimson. Cautiously, she picked at the odd substance that she knew was foreign to Shino's body and examined it closely. Two and two came together in her head. Her eyes went back to the wound and something that had missed her eye earlier caught her attention. Further from the contact point of the jutsu were numerous bugs, smashed and burned, but recognizable. Her hand went to Shino's neck, checking his vital signs. They were faint, but there.

A relieved look crossed her features and she let out her breath. 'It looks like Shino's bugs formed some sort of armor around him right before it hit. Thank goodness...'

Naruto stared down at his hand that was shaking viciously. 'I can only handle one more...' He closed his eyes in concentration and gathered his chakra in his palm once more. "_RASENGAN!_"

Kiba, amazed at the incredible power of the rasengan, stood fearfully in a defensive stance as he awaited Naruto's second coming. Naruto began stalking toward him slowly, rasengan in hand.

"Naruto-kun!"

Naruto halted momentarily, casting a glance sidelong at Hinata.

Her eyes flinched slightly from his cold eyes at first, but she steeled herself and acquired a determined gaze.

"You once told me that I should never give up. That I should always believe in myself," she said, her voice even and steady for once, none of the timidness apparent from earlier. "Naruto-kun, I won't give up on you. Won't you stop, please?"

After a brief pause, Naruto shifted back to Kiba. "...I'm sorry," he murmured.

"...I-I can't let you hurt Shino-kun or Kiba-kun anymore," Hinata said in a low tone. "I w-won't let you..."

'Don't look at her Naruto,' he commanded to himself. 'Don't listen. Remember what they did. Remember their words. Remember your mission.' His speed increased. "...Get out of my way Hinata."

The words stung at her heart, cutting into her resolve temporarily, but she shook her head. 'I have to stop him. For Kiba-kun and Shino-kun...'

The rasengan dragging behind, Naruto burst into a full out sprint at Kiba as soon as Hinata moved herself in front of partner defensively, glaring at him. "Move!" he shouted at her.

Hinata got into the Jyuuken stance and shouted back, "I won't! I won't give up on you Naruto! Because..."

The distance closed and he was within feet of her. His arm shot forward...

"...this is my way of the ninja!"

* * *

Anko awoke. Her breathing was calmer now, more stable, and the worst of her fever had parted. As her vision cleared and focused gradually, she sat up to check her surroundings. Her eyes whipped behind her abruptly, locking onto an unknown figure behind her. The figure held up his hands defensively, smiling. 

"Hello, Anko-san," he said. "Glad to see you're alright. How are you feeling?"

Anko stared at the man for a few seconds before deciding to ignore him and focus on her new predicament. She held up her hand slowly. She could feel it. It was already coursing through her body.

'Odd...I thought she was cursed with the Heaven Seal, but her's is shaped differently. What did Orochimaru-sama do I wonder?' Kabuto looked at her curiously. "Anko-san?"

"Take me to him." Anko's voice was unusually steady, but an underlying tension could be sensed. "Now."

Kabuto's usual fox like smile returned and he nodded. "Follow me."

They did not speak during their trip. Anko appeared to be in deep thoughout most of the travel and Kabuto did not offer up any words than was neccessary. It seemed as if Kabuto understood what she was going through in some way.

Inside Anko's mind, her thoughts went to memories from long ago. Why was it she was still afraid of the past? All that resided in her conciousness were the regrets and failures of times that she couldn't take back.

_Four ninjas rested on the ground of the battlefield, tired after a long excursion of training._

_The silver haired ninja wiped his brow of sweat. "Phew."_

_"That was quite impressive ladies! More than once my eternal rival and I were forced to the brink of defeat."_

_"Thanks Gai," replied a crimson-eyed konoichi. Her eyes turned to glare at his companion. "You can thank the great sexist pig ninja, Kakashi, for giving us the motivation."_

_"Damn straight!" added her spikey haired partner. "I swear, if you read that damn Icha Icha Paradise while fighting us again..." A crack of the knuckles emphasized her point._

_Kakashi held up his hands defensively, fending off the female glares. "Now, now, Anko, Kurenai. It couldn't be helped. Do you have any idea how rare this volume is? And I was just lucky enough to get it today."_

_Kurenai was then forced to hold back Anko from starting round two._

_"That new jutsu you used was amazing," Kakashi said, at least hoping to change the subject. "Why don't you use it more often Anko?"_

_Anko looked away and shrugged. Kakashi and Gai shared a knowing glance at her reaction though Kurenai didn't seem to catch it._

_"By the way Anko-san, Kakashi and myself are going out to Wind Country for an S-Class mission. We could use someone of your expertise," Gai said. "Would you care to join us?"_

_"...nah."_

_"When are you going to move forward Anko?"_

_Gai immediately put his hand on Kakashi's shoulder. "Oi, Kakashi, that was..."_

_Anko turned her back on them and started to walk away. "Whatever. What do you care."_

_Kurenai looked baffled at the sudden tension that had arison. "What was that about?"_

_Kakashi shook his head slightly, saying nothing. Gai and Kakashi knew about Anko's past because they were comrades during "The Third Secret World War". Because Kurenai was not ranked high enough her participation in the war was not as extensive. On the other hand, Anko, who was younger than all three of them, was considered a genius ninja during that time; the prodigy of the great Sannin Orochimaru. Quite often she tagged along with her jounin sensei on his missions. They knew why Anko always acted the way she did, always holding herself back._

"We'll be there shortly," Kabuto announced.

They continued deeper into the forest to their destination: Orochimaru's base camp.

* * *

"Temari!" Gaara shouted out. He and Temari had set up a trap to stop the sixth team from passing. It almost worked but the Waterfall chuunins had trick up their sleeve by using Holy Water from their village which increased their chakra by tenfold. 

"Get off!" Temari struggled in the grasp of her captor.

The Waterfall ninja grinned at Gaara while his kunai was pressed up against Temari's throat. "The Holy Water we smuggled out of the village really came in handy."

His partner grinned back. "Yeah." Pointing his short sword at Gaara, he demanded, "Now give me back the emerald or she dies!"

Gaara growled at him and thought, 'Damn it, I was careless.'

"Are all Waterfall ninja a bunch of spineless bandits? Pathetic."

"What! Who said that!"

They looked up into the forest canopy and could make out the shadow of figure. "There!"

Taking advantange of the distraction, Temari kicked her way out of her captor's grasp with a strong thrust.

The unknown ninja smirked at them from above. "Below you fools." With a flick of his wrist, two human sized puppets rose up from beneath the Waterfall ninja and siezed both of them into their metallic torsos.

"Shit!"

"You're dead now..._Kurohigi Kiki Nihatsu!_" He shut both of his palms closed and the Waterfall ninjas became nothing more than heaps of meat inside the spiked cages.

Gaara and Temari stared up at their savior in surprise.

"Kankuro? You came back?" Temari said.

Kankuro glanced at Gaara, who looked back questioningly, before the puppetmaster gazed away, appearing to be almost embarassed. Kankuro tried to play it off and only shrugged his shoulders. "I don't like running away."

Temari snorted. "Yeah right."

"Hey, someone's got to keep an eye out fot my reckless sister! I was gone for barely an hour look at the mess you wound up in," Kankuro quipped.

"Oh shut up."

Gaara let out a small smile at their antics.

Kankuro turned back to Gaara hesitantly. "Uh, Gaara...I..."

"Good to see you've returned," Gaara said.

Surprised at the lack of a verbal backlash, Kankuro scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Uh, yeah."

"It's time," Gaara said. "We're returning to Konoha."

"What? But what about that Naruto guy and your team's emerald?" Temari asked.

Gaara shook his head. "Naruto will have to meet us at the battle stadium. I need to be there when second part of the exam starts. If we don't hurry, none of us will qualify. Let's go."

* * *

"...this is my way of the ninja!" Hinata cried out. In a fluid, swift motion she struck at Naruto's forearm and aimed specifically at the chakra points connecting to the hand. With amazing precision capable only with the Byakugan, she connected. Instantly the sphere of chakra dissipated and just in time as Naruto's palm connected with Kiba's forehead. Kiba was launched into a tree, knocking him out. 

Before Naruto could do anything more, Hinata wrapped her arms Naruto as fiercely as she could and cried out, "Please...no more."

"..." Naruto was silent for he was shook up internally. He had been inches from killing Kiba, someone who he has known for a good part of his life. What would have happened if Hinata hadn't stopped him? Even with all the years of pent up anger, is this vengance what he truly desired? Deep down he was reminded of a certain raven haired ninja who's revenge drove him to edge once. How was Naruto any different?

'No! This is what I wanted...right?' Naruto questioned himself. 'I...I don't know...' came his own uncertain answer. "Damn it!"

Hinata released Naruto, startled. "Naruto-kun...?" she started cautiously.

The young blonde avoided her gaze. He glanced at the unconscious Kiba and the fallen ANBU, Shino. Finally his eyes rested on the anxious Hinata. "Hinata...you may have stopped me from doing something that I could of regretted...thank you."

Hinata blushed slightly, nodding, but was uncertain of how to handle this Naruto. 'Wh-What should I say...? He almost killed Kiba, b-but...' Then it came to her. "You don't need to thank me. I...I only did what I knew you would of wanted me to do."

_"This is my way of the ninja!"_

"..." He didn't reply.

"Naruto-kun," she started, "You've taught me, and everyone around you, many things even if you didn't realize it. We were all inspired by your courage and honesty. That was your way of the ninja."

"...Hinata, I..." Naruto stopped himself, shaking his head. "...I have to go. And I'm going to borrow your emerald, sorry." Naruto cast one more sad glance at Hinata before starting away.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata called out as he retreated into the forest. She stared after his departing form. "Oh Naruto..."

* * *

_Kurohigi Kiki Nihatsu - Black Secret Technique Machine Two Shot_

* * *

A/N: Whaaaa...an update? Impossible! Heheh, sorry for the long hiatus but I'm back. In the end, it was your encouraging comments that gave me the motivation to return. Thanks. So, the end of the first part of the jounin exam is nearing. Things are going to get very interesting to say the least as certain characters are finally going to become a part of the main story. 


	13. Horizon's Fire

* * *

**Heart of Darkness  
**  
Chapter 12:  
_Horizon's Fire_

* * *

As Naruto blazed back to Konoha, there were many things going through Naruto's head. 

**_'WHY DID YOU NOT KILL THEM?' _**suddenly demanded a dark, immense presence from the depths of young man's mind.

The inner voice did not surprise Naruto. He knew that the demon was always there, dwelling in the back of his mind like a second conscience. During Naruto's times of solitude, the demon's presence could be almost comforting, though he would never admit it. While he did not always agree with the Kyuubi, the Fox provided the much needed guidance for the budding Akatsuki. For most of Naruto's life he never had anyone to advise him nor rely on but himself and his own strength.

'...They didn't need to die. At this point, it doesn't matter if they know who I am or not,' Naruto rationalized in his thoughts. 'They can't make it back in time.'

**_'YOU DID NOT KILL THEM BECAUSE YOU COULDN'T.'_**

'What are you talking about! I killed those ANBU didn't I?'

**_'DID YOU NOT TELL ME THAT YOU WERE GOING TO DESTROY THESE FOOLS? THAT YOU DESPISED EVERY INCH OF THIS VILLAGE?'_**

'I do! I've waited five years for this day...I _will _make Konoha pay.'

**_'AND WHAT OF YOUR OLD 'FRIENDS'? WHAT WILL YOU DO WHEN THEY COME TO STOP YOU JUST AS THAT GIRL DID?'_**

'I'll...I'll do what I have to do.'

What would he do? Honestly, Naruto wasn't sure. Konoha made his life a living hell for him but should he make everyone else pay for the mistakes of another generation?

**_'WHY SHOULDN'T YOU? YOU KNOW THE TRUTH OF KONOHA. THEY HATED YOU BECAUSE THERE WAS NO ONE LEFT TO HATE. THEY NEEDED TO PLACE BLAME SOMEWHERE. THAT IS HOW HUMANS ARE.'_**

'Shut up already!' Naruto growled. It disturbed him when Kyuubi read his thoughts. 'This isn't the time for this, Fox.'

**_'SO BE IT. REMEMBER THIS THOUGH NARUTO, KONOHA WILL NOT BE AS INDECISIVE AS YOU WHEN THE TIME COMES.'_**

"I know..." he whispered. When the time comes, he will find the strength to do was necessary. He had to.

* * *

Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro made their way to the battle stadium and into the qualification office without further incident. Although they only had one emerald, Gaara chose to give his elder siblings the jewel. The decision confused the two Sand ninja, further mystifying what it was exactly that their little brother was after. Or did Gaara simply have complete faith in his partner's ability to get back to the Konoha stadium, emerald in hand? While their thoughts were on different things, all three couldn't help but feel an uneasy apprehension of deja vu. 

Shortly after qualifying themselves, Kankuro pulled Gaara and Temari aside to a secluded alley outside the arena. "Gaara, we need to talk. I think it's about time you tell us what the hell's going on here." Kankuro said, his voice taking a serious tone.

"Kankuro!" Temari began, glaring at Kankuro but he didn't back down.

"No Temari, we need to know what we're getting ourselves into," Kankuro said.

Temari thought to herself for a moment before slowly in agreeing. "He's right I suppose. Gaara?"

Gaara looked at them both steadily before sighing in resignation. "Very well. I will mask our conversation with genjutsu." The eyes of the young Akatsuki became hard as steel. "Listen carefully because I am going to say this once."

The two exchanged an uneasy glance before nodding at Gaara.

"Our mission is to steal the Scroll of Hokage," Gaara stated. "It is the single most valuable possession of Konoha. The power within it is unimaginable. The scroll contains a variety of special jutsus recorded by the past Hokages of Konoha as well as other forbbiden knowledge that are key ingredients needed in Akatsuki's ultimate plan. The scroll..."

Gaara paused and pointed at towards the stadium. "...is located deep underground, hidden beneath the battle arena. The stadium's true purpose is actually to protect and conceal the Scroll. The stadium is only open to the public a few times every year. Besides those times, it is completely sealed off and under heavy protection at all times. Soon after the matches start, Orochimaru is going to begin his coup d'etat with the former Root Division of the Konoha Military."

Kankuro and Temari gasped. "You're working with Orochimaru!" Temari exclaimed.

"Gaara, that guy--" Kankuro started.

Gaara held up his hand. "I know of Orochimaru and his ways. Trust me. We are only...cooperating with him temporarily. A truce, not an alliance. Without his invasion as distraction, we wouldn't be able to steal the scroll. Not without fighting over half of Konoha's forces."

"I see..." Temari said.

Continueing with the battle plan, Gaara said, "Once it starts, they will cancel the exam and begin evacuating everyone. We will stay hidden inside the stadium and secure the area while we wait for the second team to arrive."

"A second team?" Temari asked. "From this...Akatsuki?"

Gaara nodded, saying, "They will be breaking in with Sound's main force."

"So basically," Kankuro started slowly, "We're gonna be in the middle of a god damn _war_ while breaking into the treasure vault of the strongest military force in Fire Country. That's crazy!"

"That is our mission. Without the Scroll of Hokage, Akatsuki cannot execute the final part of the plan," Gaara stated.

* * *

"Almost there," Naruto said to himself as made leapt from branch to branch in a blur. Without warning, he halted in his tracks suddenly and snapped his head to the west. "Wait...I can almost sense...yeah!" 

Forming a seal with one hand, Naruto used his chakra to send out a thought. '_Shadow.'_

No answer.

'_Shadow?' _he called out again.

A doubtful moment passed.

'_Shadow! Are you--"_

_'...Yes...I am here...' _came a faint answer.

Naruto let out a small sigh of relief. Concentrating again, he sent out, '_Meet me at the east gate. It's time.'_

_'...Understood...' _

* * *

_  
"OROCHIMARU-SAMA!" a young Anko cried out._

_They stood alone, former pupil and teacher, on the outskirts of Konoha. In the distance the flames of a burning inferno filled the night sky with crimson red glow. Tears streamed down the girl's cheeks and her hands shook, barely able to maintain the grip on her kunai. Less than a week had passed since Orochimaru left her to rot in Sea Country. Her body had been poisoned by the fresh mark of Heaven Seal, and memories of Orochimaru stolen by the Sannin himself. He had offered her to come with him...but she refused. He abandoned her without a second a thought. The girl was left distraught and in a mess. It was only her hatred of Orochimaru that brought her out of her depression._

_Although she had not fully recovered, she immediately broke out of the hospital and tracked down her former sensei shortly after hearing that he had escaped the ANBU. The ANBU, lead by the Sandaime Hokage, had raided Orochimaru's laboratory moments earlier._

_"Why are you doing this!" She demanded furiously. Her eyes were fierce and filled with despair and rage. "Why are you leaving us?" How could he abandon his home? Were they not his friends and comrades? After all these years, how could he drop everything like they were just unwanted trash? How could he abandon...her?_

_Orochimaru's eyes gleamed back as if chuckling at her silently. He stared back at her with his mysterious, all-knowing smile. "Anko-chan...you fail to see the true purpose of my teachings. What connection do I have to those people? What does any of this," he gestured behind him the distant fires, "mean to me? Nothing. It does not mean anything. Friends, family, comrades...all of it is useless. In order to evolve, you must discard of any unneeded 'baggage'. I taught you that. Unfortunately you are still a child and don't have a true grasp on what it means."_

_Anko's eyes lowered slightly as more tears came out, unable to stop the flow. "But I...I would of done anything for you..."_

_"You would have done anything to protect me," Orochimaru said. "What I wanted was not shield but a sword. Perhaps it is because of your mother that you think like this. You lack hatred. You are weak."_

_The mention of her mother, whom she had been powerless to protect, brought a dagger through a chest and forced her to remember the memories she had buried long ago. Was it so wrong to want to protect what was precious to one's self? Anko gritted her teeth. "You're wrong! I'm not weak...I know that now. I do understand." As she spoke, the Cursed Seal began glowing neon._

_Orochimaru's smile widened, his eyes lighting up. "Interesting. Then show me." Orochimaru took a step toward her and opened his arms wide, welcoming her to him. The arrogant gesture infuriated Anko._

_In an instance, the black flames of the Heaven Seal colored her skin and the air around her ignited, forming a dark chakra around her. "I won't let you leave!"_

_"Haha, that's it. Show me your hatred!" he called out once more, laughing._

_"Shut up!"_

_"I told you once before. You must do what is necessary to achieve your true strength," he stated. "It is your hatred that makes you strong and gives you the will to seek power. If you want to stop me, Anko-chan, then you must make that choice. To achieve the strength you desire and to protect your so-called precious ones, you must let your hatred consume you."_

_"SHUT UP!" She screamed, refusing his words. The bellow was followed by a boom of chakra eminating from the enraged chuunin that shook the very ground they stood on. _

_"Come. What are you waiting for?"_

_Images came to her mind. Of the wars. The poverty. The people she failed to protect. The power she had wished for. Orochimaru's promises were tempting to her. But to accept them, to gain the tainted, yet endless vision of freedom he offered, would mean to accept the chaos along with it. And to let it take over. The same chaos that ultimately ended her mother's life. _

_"I can't..." she choked out. Her aura blinked out and the black flames began receeding back into the seal slowly._

_Orochimaru's gaze turned sour, a disapproving frown forming. "It appears you were never strong enough to begin with. Goodbye Anko." Orochimaru glanced at the fallen, sobbing girl on the ground one last time before turning his back to her and starting away. He never looked back again._

_Anko watched his figure fade away, realizing that as he melted into the shadows he was forever lost to her. Could she have stopped him, had she accepted the power of the Heaven Seal and destroyed fire with fire? Or do two evils never make a right? She would never know. The choice was made and she could never take it back._

From that day forth, Anko began to fear her own power because she saw how power corrupted ninjas. Because of Orochimaru's teachings, she feared that by unleashing it, she would ultimately be consumed by it.

"We have arrived Anko-san."

Anko's mind gradually returned to the current reality, leaving the distant memory of Orochimaru's betreyal behind. Now was not the time to be dwelling on the past. Not when the Snake himself was now within her reaches.

* * *

In lobby of the battle arena, Konoha officials and the qualified teams awaited the arrival of the seventh and final emerald carrier. A few of the teams were going over their tactics for the next stage while others chatted idly. The Sand trio stood off on their own, choosing to keep to themselves. 

Gaara quietly studied his potential challengers, looking at them through his mask. There were two teams from Leaf, two from Rain, and one from Stone. But only the pairs from Konoha concerned him.

"How much longer do we have to wait?" Neji wondered.

Neji Hyuuga, a prodigy from Konoha who fought Naruto during the chuunin exam Gaara mused to himself. His taijutsu was incredibly formidable due to his Jyuuken pressure points. He could potentially incapitate a ninja's chakra in one move. The young Hyuuga also had near perfect vision in complete 360 degrees.

"I can see you're looking forward to coming battles as much as I am, Neji-san!" Lee said enthusiastically. "I'm so excited!"

Neji rolled his eyes.

Rock Lee. Gaara's fist clenched as the memories of his near defeat came back to him. A humiliating moment. Lee was dangerous, there was no doubting that.

"I'm not," Shikamaru said with a yawn.

Shikamaru Nara. A shadow jutsu user who had defeated his sister in the previous exam. While his strength was not phenomenal, he was sharp. If he caught on to their plan it would cause trouble. Best to keep an eye on Shikamaru and make sure Naruto and he didn't let their guards down around him.

"How can you say that Shikamaru-kun! This is pivotal moment in our lives!" Lee exclaimed. "Right Sasuke-kun?"

"Whatever."

Sasuke Uchiha. Gaara's eyes rested on the final Konoha fighter. The boy who severed Naruto's only bond, transforming him into who he was today. How much had the Uchiha's strength grown he wondered. Not that it mattered. His strength couldn't possibly be comparable to Naruto's at full power.

'I should kill him right now for all the pain and suffering he has caused Naruto,' Gaara growled in his thoughts.

Abruptly, the sharingan eyes snapped to Gaara's and locked on. "You got a problem?"

Temari and Kankuro looked up in surprise, as did everyone else. A sudden tension arose in the room. All attention shifted to Sasuke and the unknown ninja he was staring at, Gaara.

Gaara returned to the piercing gaze right back at Sasuke with a menacing glare. 'I should...but Naruto would never forgive me.'

"THEY'RE HERE!" came a shout from outside, breaking the silence. A chuunin came running in through the doors. "The last team is racing to the stadium right now!"

"Oh! Let's go and see who our new challengers are Sasuke-kun!" Lee said as he rushed out with everyone soon following suit.

Sasuke and Gaara shared one last glare before stepping outside. A pair from Lightning was running to the stadium at a half speed trot with confident grins.

"Heh, save the best for last," one said.

His partner replied with a laugh.

Temari and Kankuro exchanged glances as they saw that it wasn't Naruto arriving.

"Where is he...?" Temari asked.

Gaara didn't say anything at first. He was looking off into the distance, behind the Lightning pair. After a moment, a small smile surfaced onto his features. "He is coming."

"Heh, easy sailing...eh?" The Lightning chuunin peered over his shoulder, sensing something. However, when he looked there was no one there.

"What is it?" his partner asked.

The ninja shook his head after a moment. "...Nothing. I thought--"

In a flash of fire, a masked ninja warped right in front of the Lightning pair, shocking all the onlookers.

"What the hell?"

"Where did he come from?"

"_Foxfire Teleportation_," Naruto whispered. Naruto glanced back at his competitors who were speeding to catch up before turning his back on them.

"Son of a...!"

The audience was captivated by the heat of the moment.

"Oooh, impressive!" Lee said.

"Hmph," Neji muttered.

The Lightning ninjas were furious. "Stop him!"

"I got it! _Raikou Flash!_" Taking out a scroll from his pack, he launched into the air right in front of Naruto.

The flash grenade imploded in a blinding light, forcing Naruto to cover his eyes with his arms. "Damn it!"

"Got him! Now!" The Lightning ninjas leapt into the air, preparing to pounce on their blinded victim with their katanas.

"...Just kidding." Naruto stood up and looked straight at them. The _Eyes of Kyuubi_ had several advantages of enhanced vision. Not only did he have perfect sight in darkness, but his slitted pupils could adjust to variations of light so quickly that levels of light didn't even effect him and made it nearly impossible for him to be blinded.

"I-Impossible!" They were helpless in midair as Naruto prepared a jutsu.

"_Katon: Hiyou Hidama no Jutsu!" _Naruto unleashed a fireball out of his mouth that continued to grow expotentially and completely blocked the Lightning ninjas path.

"That's HUGE!" Kankuro said disbelief.

The enourmous sphere of fire that shot into the air was nearly ten times their own size. The ninjas were inevitably engulfed in its flames, carrying them backwards with it. It then exploded with a deafening boom, sending a shockwave below that knocked anyone within 50ft. completely off the ground. Two charred, smoking bodies came falling out of the smokey sky seconds later.

"Was he always this strong?" Temari wondered to herself.

"It appears Naruto combined with his Shadow and is now at full strength," Gaara stated, smirking.

"Amazing..." she murmured.

Naruto turned back to the stadium and his audience while holding up his emerald. "I think this means I'm qualified."

* * *

_Katon: Hiyou Hidama no Jutsu - _Fire Element: Flying Fireball Skill  
_Raikou Flash_ - Lightning Flash  
_Foxfire Teleportation_

* * *

A/N: Some people were confused as to why Naruto didn't kill Hinata and her team. Isn't he the big bad Naruto of Akatsuki now? Well, the way I see it, if Naruto can live alone for 13 years in a place where everybody hated him and still be the cheery little punk that he was then I'd assume that even while being with Akatsuki for five years he can still retain a small part of his humanity. 


	14. The Serpent and the Prize

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 13:  
_The Serpent and the Prize_

* * *

_Five years ago..._

_"What!" Shikamaru's eyes were wide._

_"H-He's...HE'S DEAD?" Chouji said in disbelief._

_Stunned, Neji said, "That's...that's impossible."_

_Kiba rushed Sasuke and snagged him up by his collar. "What the fuck do you mean he's dead?"_

_Sasuke glanced away, saying nothing, his eyes distant and lifeless._

_"Answer me Uchiha!" Kiba shouted. "There's no way that deadlast would die so easily!"_

_"Kiba..." Shikamaru put his hand on the Inuzuka's shoulder, calming him._

_After a moment, Sasuke looked back at Kiba and replied emotionlessly, "I saw him die. My brother...he killed him."_

_"I-Itachi did?" Kiba said, shocked. All of Konoha knew the dreaded tail of Itachi Uchiha and his unstoppable power. For someone like that, the killing of Naruto could be done with ease. The reality finally came to him and he murmured out, "No way..."_

_"Naruto...damn it." Shikamaru cursed. Chouji, Shikamaru, and Kiba were the only things closest to what Naruto could have called childhood friends. Remorsefully, they realized with guilt that that was nothing to be proud of since they knew they had often neglected the spunky blonde more often than not. _

_Neji shook his head sadly. Naruto had changed his view on life and would forever be respected by the Hyuuga. 'Fate is cruel...' he thought._

_Kiba spoke up again, angry and feeling helpless. "Why the hell didn't you stop him Sasuke? Did you just sit there or what!"_

_Sasuke's face was a cold, stoney mask, betraying nothing of the Uchiha's feelings. "I tried to. But that bastard was too strong...I will kill him next time, for sure."_

_"Is that all you care about? You and your goddamn revenge?" Kiba said, disgusted._

_A burst of raw emotion shot into Sasuke for the first time as Kiba hit a fuse, outraging him. "Shut up! What the hell do you know?"_

_Neji and Chouji quickly stepped in between them before a fight broke out._

_"Guys!" Chouji said._

_"That's enough," came Neji's solemn words._

_"This isn't the time for this," Shikamaru agreed._

_Everyone was silenced as the hollow, desolate realism of what had actually happened came crashing down on them. Naruto was dead. Gone. Their fighting would do nothing to bring him back. The regrets of the living cannot reach the dead. Subdued, the young shinobi remained speechless as they grieved quietly to themselves._

_Finally, Sasuke turned from them and walked away. As he left, Sasuke could feel the piercing stares at his back. While no words were spoken, they could not help but think of Kiba's haunting words to Sasuke. He was the only that could of stopped his brother. That was how they felt. _

* * *

"Congratulations to all those who made it through the first half of this exam," Tsunade said, beginning her introductory speech to the contestants. The qualified teams of two were lined up in the center of the stadium that was packed with Konoha spectators. 

"Oooh, this is going to be exciting, huh Sakura?" Ino commented to her friend.

Her pink-haired companion nodded with a smile. "Sasuke-kun's been training very hard. Especially since he couldn't participate in the last jounin exam..." Sakura trailed off. She didn't need to explain the reason why.

It was commonly known that Sasuke had been labelled a traitor by the hidden village after his attempted departure from Konoha. The Uchiha prodigy had recieved harsh reprimands, courtesy of the Godaime Tsunade. During his first two years of probation, he had not been allowed to go on any A Class missions and recieved very few B Class ones. ANBU had also initially been assigned to watch over Sasuke to prevent him from doing anything drastic.

"How do you think Shikamaru will do?" Sakura asked.

Ino expression turned sour and she crossed her arms. "That lazy ass? Hmph, well he better at least _try _to make it past the first bracket or else I'm definitely going to have to give him a piece of my mind."

Sakura giggled at the blonde because she knew her friend's true feelings. 'Ino and Shikamaru have a nice relationship. Unlike Sasuke and I...' She shook her head, waving away the thought. That wasn't completely true. Their relationship was progressing albeit very slowly. 'Baby steps Sakura, baby steps.'

In truth, Sakura was probably the closest friend Sasuke had, along with Lee, whom he trained with frequently. Not many people cared to socialize with Sasuke after his escape episode.

Sakura's thoughts were interrupted as she overheard the murmur of people near her.

"Hey, isn't that the Uchiha down there?"

"Yeah. Can't believe they're letting that traitor participate."

"No kidding. He should of been locked up a long time ago. Who knows what he'll do! He is that Itachi's brother after all."

Sakura cast a glare at the speakers but they didn't notice. 'They don't even know Sasuke! How dare they!'

Sasuke's status in the village had changed as a consequence of his decision to leave Konoha. Before that time, he had always been revered by the older residents as the pride and glory of Konoha's youth. These days people barely cast him a glance even in passing, choosing to ignore him completely. He had lost the respect of many of his peers and the patriotic elders did not take Sasuke's attempted abandonment of Konoha lightly. It was easy for them to turn the once respected Uchiha into the village's new scapegoat, especially since the old one was now gone. Sasuke had become isolated from the rest of the village.

Though most of his peers from the old rookie genin pack withheld their judgement against him and treated him as a Konoha shinobi, Sasuke's attitude did not help things any. At times he seemed to be distancing himself on purpose, placing himself in his own purgatory of solitude. If Sasuke could be called socially aloof before his turncoat period then he had only become more of a recluse since then.

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, Sakura looked over to Ino.

"Just ignore them. They don't know any better," Ino said.

"Yeah, I know..."

They returned their attention back towards the Hokage.

"...and so, let the tournament begin!" Tsunde finished. She motioned at the jounin below who nodded.

"The first match is...Neji Hyuuga versus Kaijin Hanotarou."

* * *

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't cut your head off right now...Orochimaru!" Anko demanded. 

"Temper, temper, Anko-san. I would calm down if I were you. Do you realize the situation you are in?" Kabuto said at Orochimaru's side.

"Don't get in my way!"

Orochimaru chuckled. "Foolish little Anko. Do you not understand yet?"

Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "Wrong answer." In the blink of an eye, Anko vanished from their sight.

Immediately Kabuto stepped forward to intervene but Orochimaru brought his arm out in front of his suboordinate. Kabuto looked questioningly at the Sannin who only grinned in return and did not attempt to defend himself.

She reappeared in front of Orochimaru with her blade merely centimeters from his throat.

Her eyes widened in shock. 'Wh-what is this...I can't move!' she realized, frozen and stunned. All it would take was a small, simple thrust forward for her dagger to end it all and yet her body wouldn't move. She was completely paralyzed and Orochimaru hadn't even lifted a finger. "Wh-what...is this?"

"Can you feel it coursing through your veins, imbending your blood with the power you always dreamed of?"

"Y-You p-poisoned me?"

"Not just any poison," he explained. "Venom extracted from the Serpent God himself, Orochi. It feeds off the power of the Hell Seal that I have gifted you with."

'So that's it...' Kabuto thought, peering at the Cursed Seal on Anko's neck. 'The Heaven Seal...the Earth Seal...and now, the Hell Seal. Orochimaru's three strongest curses. Their power is far superior to that of the seals he crafted for the Sound Four.'

"You bastard...!" Her hand went to the nape of her neck.

"As long as his blood runs through my body you cannot harm me. Be thankful, Anko-chan, for I have given you with the strength you were too weak, too afraid to attain yourself."

"I didn't ask for this!"

Orochimaru smirked. "Be honest with yourself Anko. You cannot lie to me."

"Orochimaru," came an unknown voice, interrupting their conversation. A ninja, masked and garbed in an ANBU uniform, materialized before them. He kneeled at their feet.

Anko's brows furrowed at the newcomer. 'ANBU? What's going on?'

Kabuto frowned at the ANBU. "Oi, Oi, what did I tell you before? Don't forget who you're speaking to. Or do you want to go through _that_ again?"

"...sama," the ninja finished the suffix slowly. "Forgive me, this is still new to me as I--"

Pinching the bridge of his nose in minor irritation, Kabuto sighed at the robotic sounding ANBU. "Yes, yes, I know."

Orochimaru waved his hand in a tired motion, dismissing the situation. "What is it, Sai?"

"We have received the signal from the Akatsuki, Naruto Uzumaki," Sai stated.

Orochimaru's grin widened. "And so it begins. Commence with the operation. Oh, and tell the men to not get in the way of _them_," Orochimaru added off-handedly.

"Understood," Sai said and vanished into the air.

"Orochimaru..." Anko started, her voice tipping with a controlled emnity. "This 'Hell' Seal...that ANBU...Akatsuki...Just what is going on here?"

"You want to know, my Anko? I will tell you. I am here to claim what is rightfully mine. I will rid this world of Konoha's pathetic existence and take Sasuke-kun for my own."

"Sasuke Uchiha! Even after all these years...?" Anko said in disbelief. "How do you intend to do that? He is of Konoha shinobi! He won't just..."

"It is not a question of how but when, my dear. The moment Sasuke chose to come after me he was mine from the beginning. I _let _you Konoha simpletons keep him. I have been watching all this time. I have seen how Sasuke is rejected and shackled. I must say..."

Orochimaru licked his lips with anxiousness. "Sasuke-kun is looking very delicious these days. Sasuke's thirst...hate...vengance...and everything else has all progressed quite satisfactorily, thanks to Konoha."

"Thanks to Konoha? We didn't do you any favors!"

He shook his head at Anko. "You do not cage a wolf and attempt to control him with a collar. Nor will the wolf be fulfilled by dead rabbits fed to him on a stick. With no adequate prey for the wolf, it is only a matter of time before the beast traces his leesh back to the owner and feasts on the master's flesh. Just as Itachi did."

Holding out his palm, Orochimaru made a fist and held it up to sky. "Everything is coming together rather splendidly. No one will be able to stop me once everything is in place. Not Konoha, not the Kages, not even Akatsuki. Itachi will fear my power. I will become unstoppable! Hahaha..." His hollow laughter filled the air.

"And what the hell do you want from me!"

Orochimaru walked up to Anko and cupped her cheek with a sinister smile. "Anko, you will become my sword of destruction, just as you were in those years past. Those were precious times were they not?"

Unable to say anything, Anko whipped her chin out of his grasp and avoided his gaze uncomfortably.

Orochimaru's eyes sparkled with glee. "Come. It is time we award our dear Sasuke-kun for his patience. We will give him a bloody feast that will only make his appetite grow."

* * *

Inside the Konoha stadium walls were a multitude of narrow hallways and small side rooms that were currently being used as temporarily lodging for each of the qualifying contestants. A bored Shikamaru wandered these halls as the first match went on. 

'I hope I don't have to fight Sasuke or Lee in the first round. That would be troublesome,' Shikamaru thought to himself. 'Or those two weird guys with the masks...'

_Shikamaru snapped his head to the seats empty seats beside them. 'What the hell! I didn't even feel them move! How the hell did they vanish so quickly without me noticing?' he thought to himself. 'It's like they were never there to begin with...like ghosts.'_

Shikamaru's brow furrowed worriedly. 'I get a bad feeling from them...' He halted abruptly in his footsteps just before he turned a corner. 'Speak of the devil...'

Just ahead of him were those very same masked shinobi. He watched them as they entered one of the rooms.

"What are you doing over there you bum?"

Shikamaru looked over to the source of the voice and saw Temari and Kankuro walking towards him. He shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing much...just wandering around aimlessly."

"As always," Temari commented with a smirk, "wasting your time."

"Hmph," he huffed, smiling lazily. "What about you two?"

"Doing the same...just wandering," she replied.

"I see. Well I'm gonna go check out my partner's match and see if Chouji's here." Shikamaru turned. "See ya around. And good luck." He waved and started away.

"Yeah, you too."

As they went their seperate paths Shikamaru cast a quick glance over his shoulder and noticed that the Sand duo were heading towards the same room the two masked ninja had gone into.

Raising an eyebrow, he thought to himself, 'They know each other?' With a shrug, Shikamaru continued on his way.

Inside the room, Naruto and Gaara discussed their mission.

"My shadow has already sent the signal," Naruto stated.

"When was this?" Gaara asked.

"'bout an hour ago."

"I see."

"Also, we gotta watch out for Orochimaru. That bastard is up to something as always."

Gaara nodded. "Until then we should--" Gaara paused, narrowing his eyes at Naruto's body as he noticed something. He studied his partner closely.

"What?" Naruto crossed his arms, almost seeming as if he was trying to hide something.

"Naruto. You will stay here and rest. You need to recover your strength."

"Wh-What? Why? I feel fine!" Naruto quickly blurted out.

Gaara came up to Naruto and gave him a light jab in the abdomen, causing him to yelp out.

"OWW! H-Hey!"

Kankuro and Temari walked in from the hall.

"Hey, what's all this racket?" Kankuro asked.

"We can hear you all the way from the hallway," Temari commented.

"Naruto is injured. He needs medical attention," Gaara replied.

"No, I don't. I'm telling you I'm fine," Naruto insisted stubbornly. "If I'm resting in here then how am I gonna know if I'm fighting next?"

Gaara sighed. "That's not important. Naruto, I know that the _Kage Reikon Katsu no Jutsu _slows down your regeneration rate significantly. And I also know that both you and your shadow have been fighting nonstop since the exam started. You need to rest and get back to full strength."

"But..."

"Naruto...You cannot risk fighting Sasuke yet. Not until the invasion starts."

"..." Naruto said nothing more but resigned to a silent anger. 'Sasuke...'

Gaara shifted to Temari. "You told me earlier that you have had training as a medical ninja?"

"What? Um, yeah a little..."

"Then can you tend to Naruto?" Gaara asked.

"Eh? Uh, I don't think I'm..." Temari started hesitantly.

Kankuro burst out laughing. "Haha, you don't want Temari to do it. She'll end up cutting him open even more just like--" A fist into his stomach stopped his mouth from moving as he doubled over.

Temari glared. "Shut up Kankuro."

"That...hurt..." Kankuro muttered.

"Please Temari?" Gaara asked once more. "We can't take him to a Konoha medic."

Unable to refuse such a sincere request from little brother, Temari gave in with a sigh. "Alright. I'll see what I can do." She was surprised when she was rewarded with a rare, small smile from Gaara.

"Thank you. I will leave him in your care. I'm going to go scout the area for any clues on whereabouts of secret entrances that lead to the Scroll."

"Wait. I'll come with you," Kankuro said. "I was getting bored anyways and I don't want to be around when the screaming starts."

"Hmph, whatever idiot," Temari scoffed.

Gaara glanced at Kankuro for a moment before nodding. "Very well. Let's go."

As they left, Temari couldn't help but smile a little. 'Our relationships are getting better. Just like it used to be...No. Better than it used to be,' she thought. 'Right, time to get to work.' She shifted to Naruto finally, who appeared to be deep in thought. 'This guy...every time I see him, he's always looking either sad or angry. I wonder why?'

Temari shook her head. Going up to him, she snapped her fingers in front of his face. "Hey!"

Naruto blinked out of his daze. "...Huh?"

"Were you even paying attention? Get on the bed and take off your shirt. I need to have a look at your injuries."

"Oh...uh, okay." Naruto felt a bit odd at such a sudden demand from an unfamiliar female but complied nonetheless. As he took off his shirt, Temari couldn't help but gasp out when a series of battle scars and the half-healed gashes that marred his torso's skin were revealed.

"The life of an Akatsuki..." Naruto commented calmly, noticing her reaction.

Her face flushed with embarrassment. "I didn't mean to..."

He waved it off and smiled weakly at her. "It's alright. They're not as bad as they seem."

Temari reached out, hesitating a bit, before slowly running her hands over his bare back. Naruto flinched unwillingly at the inital contact but let Temari do her work as she searched for new injuries. Concentrating, she channeled a healing chakra through her palms and her hands began to radiate with a soft green glow.

"...What is it like in Akatsuki?" Temari asked.

"Hm?"

"I've...I've only heard rumors of them and..."

"...Most of them are probably true," he said.

Temari's eyes were troubled. "I...I want to know what kind of life Gaara has had. I want to know what he has gone through and who has experienced it with these past years since he's been gone."

Naruto didn't say anything at first. "It would be better to hear it from him."

"Somehow I don't think he would tell me."

"Heh...you're probably right."

"You two...you two are very close aren't you?" she said.

He nodded. "We've been through a lot. Gaara's like a brother to me. I'd give my life for him."

"I get the feeling that he would do the same for you." Temari observed.

Naruto nodded again. "We made a pledge. A vow. We'd only fight for each other and no one else. Being in Akatsuki, we lost sense of reality...what the truth was...and what direction we should take. This was our answer. Through blood and through death, no matter what happened, as long we had each other we'd know what path to take.

"As for Akatsuki...we are simply a group of soldiers brought together by a common goal. We've fought through countless wars together in the Western Countries and saved one another's life on more than one occassion. We're comrades, that much is true. But that's where the loyalty ends. In another life, they'd be my enemies...and I wouldn't of hesitated for a second to kill them."

"Is Gaara...happy?"

Naruto thought for a moment. "He's content. We know what we have to do."

"I see...thank you for telling me this, Naruto," Temari said with heartfelt sincerity. Finished healing the rest of the wounds on his back, she told him, "Turn around and let me have a look at your chest."

Naruto did so and swung about so that he was facing her. As Temari pressed her hands onto his chest, their eyes made contact suddenly, causing them to be reminded of the circumstance they were in and of their close proximity. It was much easier when they weren't facing each other. They both looked away, blushes on their faces.

"Er...I really appreciate you doing this for me," Naruto mumbled out, hoping to fill the uncomfortable silence that arisen.

"N-No problem..." Temari awkwardly replied. As she carressed his skin with her hands, she couldn't help but take notice of how muscular Naruto's chest was. 'Get a hold of yourself woman,' she berated herself. 'He's just your everyday, impossibly powerful hunk of a ninja who happens to have an amazing heart and a strong sense of duty. No, not attractive at all.' Fooling herself momentarily, she concetrated back on healing.

A short time passed until Temari's work was complete. "Okay, done. Now for the hard part."

"Eh?" Naruto looked at her curiously.

"I only sealed the wounds with chakra to make it heal faster but they won't hold up in battle," Temari explained. For some odd reason, she had a apologetic look on her face. "To stop them from opening again, I need to apply stitches and bandages."

"Oh, okay."

'No need to tell him I practically failed this part of the exam during medical training,' she thought. "Now hold still...this might hurt a bit."

Outside in the center stage of the Konoha stadium, Neji quirked an eyebrow. 'What was that strange scream?' He shook his head and focused back on his fight. 'No matter, this fight is almost finished. The battle is mine.'

* * *

_Kage Reikon Katsu no Jutsu - _Shadow Soul Split Skill

* * *

A/N: This chapter was more devoted to show you how Konoha has changed (or not). 

Plot wise, things are slowly coming together for me. When I started writing this story I pretty much had all the major events planned out up until the end of the 1st part of the exam. I knew how it started and I also knew how I was going to end it but I didn't know how I was going to get there initially. I hit a major roadblock and lost motivation. But I've come to realize that I can't just plan out every single thing ahead of time because you need to let things develop fluidly during the writing process.

In the beginning, I did mention that this was not going to be a "dark" story and I'm still sticking to it. You won't see characters dying on a whim. There's plenty of other stories that do that for you :p However, things most certainly can never be the same again so there definitely won't be a fairy tale ending either; a lot of blood will undoubtedly be spilled. Story wise, I hope to try to follow the essence of the original Naruto series only that this story will be on the other side of the spectrum.

That being said, I think I have some pretty cool surprises in store for readers up ahead that you guys will like.

Once again, thanks for reading and until next time...!


	15. Havoc's Entry

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 14:  
_Havoc's Entry_

* * *

_"...Jinchuuriki...Weapons of Akatsuki...I despise these names..."_

_"...you're just kids aren't you...?"_

_"...you silly idiot...this is how you do it..."_

_"...trust only yourselves...no matter what they say..."_

_"...family? That's an interesting way to put it...I suppose we are aren't we...?"_

_"...open your eyes...don't be afraid..."_

_"...this is what war is..."_

_"...you are stronger than you think...and I'm not just talking about the Fox..."__  
_

_"...I'm sorry, I'm making you worried about me aren't I? I'll be fine..."_

_"...run! Run now and don't look back...!"_

_"...Remember this...Naruto...Gaara...we are not just tools. We too have our own spirits...our own souls..."_

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

At the north gate of Konoha, the winds were oddly quiet this evening. The entire forest appeared to be eerily silent, unnerving the gate guards.

"Hey, you guys sure you don't see anything from up there?" a guard asked, glancing up at the two watchtowers above him.

No answer.

"Che, they're slacking off again I bet," his partner commented with a yawn. "Wish I didn't get stuck with guard duty today. I wanted to watch the jounin exam."

"Shh, quiet," the other guard hushed him as he peered off into the distance with a serious gaze. "Do you hear that?"

"Huh. No, I don't hear anything."

"Precisely. Something is wrong..."

Rolling his eyes, he said, "Lighten up. The watchtowers will see anything before we do and they haven't said nothing."

"...I'm going to go check if they've noticed anything suspicious."

"Eh, alright."

Stalking off inside the gates, he made his way up of the barrier wall and to one of the watchtowers. "Hey, have you guys..." He stopped in mid-sentence with a gasp. Upon entering the tower a sour, dank stench immediately overcame him. The cause were the three corpses laying on the ground, surrounded by pools of blood.

"Wh-What is this?" Quickly , he went to the other tower only to find more bodies. "What is going on!" Hopping through the window, he landed at the front of the gate and ran to his companion with a distraught expression. "Something's wrong! The watchtower guards are...hey! Are you listening?"

"Th-They're here..." The other guard, eyes filled with shock and fear, murmured and pointed ahead. Following the direction, it was then the guard understood his partner's vacant expression. In the blink of an eye, the entire surroundings of the north gate had become overwhelmed with hundreds of ninjas emerging from the forest. Their footsteps made no sounds.

"The army of Sound!" he exclaimed. "They must have a wide-area genjutsu silencing their movements somehow!"

"I'll go notify the authorities!" The guard began to leave but was surprised to find that a group of ANBU had materialized behind them, out of no where. "Oh good timing! Listen, the Sound are--UGH!"

The other guard immediately whipped behind him at the sound to see his partner's lifeless body resting on the ground, his throat slit.

"What is the meaning of this!"

One of the ANBU removed his mask to reveal it was the same ANBU Orochimaru had met with earlier. Sai smiled at the guard. A smile with no emotion or feeling. He motioned at the other ANBU.

Immediately, they viciously pounced on the remaining guard with no mercy, jutting their blades through his chest. "GAAH!"

Sai looked off towards the approaching Sound Army with a calm demeanor. "Commencing covert operation A7-3. Codename: Revival. Beginning mission now."

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

Meanwhile, on the opposide side of Konoha, a heavy mist had begun to blanket the surroundings of the south gate. Such thick mist was highly unusual for the time of day and alarmed the Konoha guards. 

"What's going on?"

"It must be ninjutsu! Careful, the enemy may be near!"

The guards readied themselves and watchtower sentries armed their crossbows. While they waited anxiously for something to appear, the chirp of the forest harmonics slowly became softer as another noise drowned over it.

"...You hear that?" the gate guard said.

"Sounds like...rushing water?"

"LOOK OUT!" came a cry from the sentries. An enourmous tsunami wave burst forth from the mist at an incredible speed. The warning came too late and the waves slammed into south gates, completely demolishing it and watchtowers. The Konoha ninjas struggled with a futile effort as they were engulfed by the violent waters.

When the waters subsided finally, two unknown figures appeared. They were garbed in cloaks decorated with a pattern of red clouds.

"Must you be so flamboiyant Kisame," said his solumn companion.

Kisame grinned. "Heh, you know me Itachi."

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

As Gaara and Kankuro made their back to the temporary lodging, they could hear what sounded like two people argueing echo the hall. The closer they got to room, the louder the commotion became. Exchanging bewildered glances, the brothers entered. 

"...quit whining! And stop resisting already!"

"Uh, no. Are you crazy? My skin isn't a flimsy piece of cloth for you to practice on! You're not touching me with those needles again."

"You're such a baby," Temari said, arms crossed.

Brow twitching in irritation, Naruto retorted, "Excuse me if I don't like being tortured for no reason."

"Heh," Kankuro grinned. He opened his mouth to speak but Temari cut him off with a dangerous glare.

"If you say anything I'll kill you."

"Tch, fine..."

Gaara looked confused. "What happened?"

Naruto coughed before replying. "...Nothing. My injuries are fine now thanks to Temari..._I guess."_

"Hmph."

"Anyways, did you guys find anything?"

"No," Gaara answered with a shake of his head. "Far too many people around to scout properly. We will need to wait until the invasion starts. That's not why we came back though. They just announced the next match. Your fight is up next. Your opponent is Dara of the Hidden Village of Rock."

"...I see." His expression appeared to be slightly downcast at the news but he hid it quickly with a confident smile. Standing up, Naruto stretched his limbs. "Guess it'll be a good warmup. Fighting under the _Kage Reikon Katsu no Jutsu _is so restricting."

"Try to make it quick," Gaara said. "If they recognize your fighting style..."

"Yeah, I know. Let's go."

Naruto made his way to the center stage while the rest of the group seperated from him and headed towards the reserved spectator balcony for contestants. Most of the competing chuunins were already there, awaiting the next match.

Sasuke cast a sidelong glance at Gaara as he entered. 'So this Tenma person is that guy's partner huh.'

Once Naruto arrived, the overseeing jounin motioned at both contestants.

"Are you ready?"

They nodded.

"Tenma vs Dara...BEGIN!"

Naruto eyed his opponent, Dara, for the first time. A short man with long with his left eye covered with an unusual eye patch and his face mangled with battle scars. Dara returned the analytical gaze with an oddly casual smirk.

"Shall you make the first move or shall I?" Dara said nonchalantly.

The young Akatsuki narrowed his eyes. A thin red chakra aura surged around Naruto as he sprung forward. In a split second, he already was within reach of a surprised Dara with one lunge. Sounding a ferocious growl, Naruto lashed out at him. His claw tore into Dara's face and launched the ninja clear across the arena.

"Wow!" the audience clammerered.

"I barely even saw him move!"

Dara coughed harshly with his hand covering his face. Gradually, he stood up and said, "Always full of so much energy, yeah." Dara removed his hand from his face, displaying a shattered clay mask crumbling off his skin. "Gaara's technique is pretty useful though...yeah." A much younger, unblemished face was revealed.

'A clay mask...?' Eyes widening, Naruto took a step back in astonishment. "Y-You...! What are you doing here..."

On the contestant balcony, Gaara also appeared to be in shock. "That man is..."

"...Deidara!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Shh, keep your voice down idiot," he said.

Naruto growled but kept his tone low. "Answer me Deidara! Why are you here?"

"_He_ sent me to watch and make sure things go according to plan, yeah. We need that scroll and, afterall, this is your first mission since--"

"Don't say it!" Naruto angrily cut him off. "You don't have a right to talk about her."

Deidara frowned. "When are you going to let it go? You need to see the big picture, yeah."

"Shut up!"

Watching them the two exchange words, Temari wondered, "What are they talking about?"

"That man is...Akatsuki," Gaara whispered. 'This could cause trouble for us in the future if Naruto doesn't do something about him...'

"Fine, fine," Deidara coolly said with a shrug. "So, shall we continue our little showmatch and give our audience a good fight Naruto-kun?"

'I need to get rid of him...' Naruto thought. "...Deidara, get lost. You're not needed here."

"Get lost?" Deidara raised an eyebrow. "Haha, who do you think you are? I don't take orders from a _weapon_."

Naruto flinched at the label. "Don't piss me off," he growled. "I can finish you in one shot."

Deidara smirked. "Underestimating me, yeah?"

Once again, Naruto seemingly teleported in front of Deidara in instance by using an enhanced version of the _Shunshin no Jutsu; _a technique that allowed Naruto near supersonic speed by pouring concentrated chakra into his movements. "I'm not stupid," he said. "You're just a clone created by his_ Shoten no Jutsu._"

Forming a seal with one hand, Naruto pulled back his open hand that had now had a symbol carved into the center of his palm. He then grabbed a hold of Deidara's collar before he could get away. Peering at Deidara with his cold, crimson eyes, Naruto told him in a deadly tone, "Stay out of my business."

Deidara noticed the seal on his palm for 'reverse' and recognized what it meant immediately. "Wait, Naruto, what are you doing!" he quickly blurted out, small sweat bullets forming on his forehead. "Don't you idiot! _He _was the one that sent me!"

Naruto was unperturbed. "I don't care. Tell him I don't need a watchdog." Transluscent chakras, invisible to the naked eye, started swirling into his palm as if it was pulling the energy from another source.

"STOP--"

"_Gyakuten Rasenheki!_" Naruto yelled out and shoved his palm into Deidara's stomach. The effect was instantaneous, rendering the Akatsuki frozen. His body trembling, Deidara could feel his chakra being sucked out of the clone and transfering into Naruto's palm.

The technique Naruto used was a jutsu he developed when trying to master the _rasengan. _By reversing the direction of the spiral chakra flow of the _rasengan_, Naruto discovered that he could draw energy from his opponent and use their own chakra force against them. He also found out that it was especially useful against clones who's chakra have no permanent link to the body and cannot not resist the pull. He named it the _'Reverse Spiral Burst'._

Once the chakra in Naruto's palm reached its limit, he released the unstable energy straight into Deidara at point blank range. The clone screamed as the blast of chakra obliterated his body and engulfed the two in a heated explosion. When the smoke cleared, only Naruto was left standing. The audience gasped with amazement.

'There's no doubt about it. I only caught a glimpse of it but that chakra flow looked like...' Sasuke narrowed his _sharingan _activated eyes. 'Just who _is _this guy to know such a technique?'

"Winner: Tenma!"

The stadium filled with applauds. Up above them at the Hokage's podium, Shizune commented to her master, "Wow, that was quick. Still, he used a rather impressive jutsu don't you think Tsunade-sama?"

"Yes, it was," the Godaime agreed. "Where is this Tenma from?"

"Let's see..." Shizune looked up and down the list in her hands. "Oh! This is a rare occurance. Says here he and his partner come from the Western Countries, from the Hidden Village of Moon. We almost never hear anything from the Western Countries much less see anyone from there."

Abruptly, Tsunade snapped her head to Shizune with an almost spooked face. "What did you just say?"

"Hm? I just said that he's from the Hidden Village of Moon."

"That's impossible. The Hidden Village of Moon is..."

Before the Hokage could finish, a screeching siren cut her off. Loud, blaring alarms began going off everywhere, filling the stadium with its sharp echoes.

Shizune and Tsunade exchanged startled expressions. "Those are the emergency sirens! What's going on Tsunade-sama? Could this be a false alarm?"

Confusion and distress set in the crowds.

"Wh-What's happening?"

"Are we under attack?"

"This is some kind of test...isn't it?"

'So those uncomfirmed intelligence reports I recieved were true...The time has finally come.' Shaking her head to Shizune, her eyes dark and somber, Tsunade answered, "No. This can only mean one thing...We are being invaded."

Tsunade took a deep, slow breath and stood up. Using her chakra to carry her voice, she addressed the stadium. "Everyone, please remain calm! Those alarms mean that Konoha is now in a state of emergency. This is not a drill. I repeat, this is not a drill! All non-military personel please procede with evacuation procedures in an orderly fashion. To all jounins currently within the stadium, begin guiding all residents to the monument shelters immediately!"

Screams and cries rang throughout the stadium.

"N-No way!"

"This can't be happening!"

Tsunade shifted back to her apprentice. "Shizune! Gather all of the available jounins you can, including the inactive ones. Go now!"

"Hai!"

"Hokage-sama!"

The Godaime looked behind her and saw Neji, Lee, Shikamaru, and Sasuke standing there all with serious eyes. She nodded at them. "Shikamaru, I need you to find out what the hell the ANBU are doing and where the hell are they!"

"Got it."

"Neji, find what chuunins you can and tell them to begin mobilizing. They will join the jounins at the frontlines shortly."

"Understood."

"Sasuke and Lee, sweep the area as quickly as you can and determine which sectors the enemy is coming from. However, do _not_ engage them. You must report back to the jounins and let them know what you find out."

Lee nodded earnestly. "Right! Let's go Sasuke-kun!"

Sasuke didn't leave at once. "Hokage-sama, who are they?"

Tsunade looked at Sasuke for a moment before replying, "Most likely...Orochimaru's army of Sound."

"...I see," was all he said before leaving to follow Lee. Sasuke hid a dark grin. 'At last...I'm gonna tear every single one of Orochimaru's pawns apart with my bare hands. I'll make that bastard pay for leaving me to rot here in this stinking village.'

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

Kankuro, Temari, and Naruto watched while sand oozed over the door, covering it. Gaara whispered series of words. The sand appeared to morph and soon faded into the concrete wall, sealing the room's entrance.

"This genjutsu should keep us hidden for a while as they evacuate the stadium," Gaara stated. He turned to Naruto. "I'm surprised we didn't know notice Deidara's presence this entire time."

"Yeah. He said he was sent to watch over us," Naruto said. "It's a good thing Deidara doesn't have a high chakra mass or else the clone woulda been much stronger."

"Are you talking about that guy Naruto fought?" Temari asked. "What's the problem? I thought you said he was part of Akatsuki?"

Gaara nodded. "He is. He's one of the Ten Rings of Akatsuki who founded the organization."

"Eh then what's the big deal?" Kankuro wondered.

Naruto and Gaara glanced at each other.

"...It's complicated. Let's just say that we don't get along with everybody in Akatsuki," commented Naruto.

Gaara explained further. "We're not part of the group that leads Akatsuki. We only follow orders. I suppose you can say we're a seperate division. They call us the Weapons of Akatsuki."

"Tch, I hate that name," Naruto muttered. "Anyways, it's not a big deal. Gaara and I just don't like that guy."

"If you say so," Temari said with a shrug.

'They're not telling us something...' Kankuro speculated inwardly with suspicious thoughts. He spoke up. "So when this other group from Akatsuki gets here, are they going to be okay with us being here?"

"Yeah. We know the ones who are coming. They'll understand you're Gaara's family," Naruto said.

"What are we going to do now?" Temari asked.

"We wait." answered Gaara.

* * *

_Jinchuuriki - _Power of Human Sacrifice (the name for bijuu demon carriers like Gaara and Naruto) 

**(Jutsu Index) **

_Shoten no Jutsu _- Shapeshifting Skill  
_Shunshin no Jutsu _- Body Flicker Skill

**(Original Jutsus) **

_Nendo no Yoroi _- Armor of Clay  
_Gyakuten Rasenheki - _Reversal Spiral Burst

* * *

A/N: Sai and Deidara are real characters from the Naruto manga. Don't hate me for the way Deidara talks :) That's just his manor of speech (as translated in the manga). 

I realize I didn't make it obvious enough but the battle Naruto and non-battle Naruto are very different people in a sense. The battle Naruto is constantly being fed the demon chakra of Kyuubi which has a strong effect on his personality. As Kyuubi once told him before, he gains a bloodlust with this power. Without that chakra, that bloodlust is washed away. For example, when Hinata cut Naruto's chakra points temporarily she inadvertedly cut through his bloodlust, momentarily clearing his mind.


	16. War from Within

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 15:  
_War from Within_

* * *

_Darkness._

'Where...am I...?'

_The absence of light. _

'What is...this...?'

_Floating in the infinite abyss of shadows, his mind wandered. His consciousness was but a fleeting afterthought, elevating him. High above him, two crimson eyes watched passively. The eyes did not bother him or scare him. They have always been there, watching, since as far back as he could remember._

_A soft, warm voice entered the dark void._

_"...don't be afraid..."_

_The female voice soothed his heart, calming the depths of his soul._

'...I'm...not...'

_He had always known fear. Fear of them. Fear of loneliness. Fear of hatred. He had always known. But he was strong. He would never let it get to him. _

_Quick flares of light showered his vision and a series of images flickered past his eyes._

_Flash._

_"...you're just kids aren't you?"_

_"Hey! Am not! C'mon Gaara, let's show her what we got!"_

_She shook her head at them, her eyes playful. _

_Flash._

_"...-neechan! Look, I can do it now-- OW!"_

_"...You silly idiot. This is how you do it..."_

_She smiled at him. A serene, angelic smile._

_Flash._

_"...You are stronger than you think...and I'm not just talking about the Fox..."_

_"...Do you know why you're able stand Kyuubi's chakra? Because of the strength of your own spiritual force."_

'...I am...strong...'

_Flash._

_"...Don't take the easy way out. You're stronger than that. Deal with the pain, learn to overcome it. Don't let Kyuubi's chakra do everything for you. It will only harm you in the long run."_

_"But a scar will..."_

_"Scars serve as a reminder of the mistakes you have made. Scars are the trials of life you must endure..."_

_"...They make you human..."_

_To be human. He was not beast. He was not a demon. He was not a weapon. No matter what they said, they couldn't take away his humanity._

_"...Remember this...Naruto...Gaara...we're not just tools. We have our own spirits...our own souls..."_

'...I remember...I won't forget...'

_He would never forget. Never._

_"...now! Run and don't look back!"_

_"NO! I won't! I won't leave you...Nibi-neechan!"_

A dream. A nightmare.

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

By the time the sirens had gone off dusk was just over the horizon. The Hidden Village of Sound moved quickly with incredible organization and precision. They set up barricades and took control of various sections of the hidden village well before Konoha could mobilize properly. Konoha became a battlefield within hours. Small clashes between the two armies were everywhere in the village for no clear frontlines had been determined yet. The nature of the invasion was far different than that of Orochimaru's past infiltration; it was not mindless destruction. There seemed to be greater forces working beneath the surface.

As evening fell upon Konoha, two ninjas hid stealthily among the housing, peering over the rooftops at various patrols of Sound soldiers.

"Che...they already have control of the market place too," Sasuke muttered.

"I can't believe this!" Lee whispered in outrage. "How could this of happened so fast! Last time we repelled the Sound even though we were taken by surprise. How come..."

"This time is different," Sasuke said.

Lee looked over at Sasuke, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Don't you get it idiot? These guys..."

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

'...already had control of the area before the invasion even started somehow,' Shikamaru thought grimly. During his travel to the headquarters of ANBU, Shikamaru saw the systematic mayhem of Orochimaru's ninjas. He could immediately tell that this was not a simple invasion.

'That's why there were dead ninjas in the middle of town, no where near any of the gate entrances,' he thought to himself. 'This was done from the inside. Orochimaru didn't plan this by himself...he had help from someone. Someone _within _Konoha I suspect.'

"Damn it! What is going on here?" Shikamaru cursed to himself at the gloomy situation. '...I hope Ino is okay. She went with Sakura to help escort the villagers into the shelters so she should be alright.' He looked up ahead. 'There's ANBU Headquarters...'

Moving among the shadows with a jutsu, he snuck into the building. What met Shikamaru's eyes shook the young chuunin greatly and an uneasy feeling built up in his stomach. 'What's going on...this is a massacre. It looks as if they were ambushed,' Shikamaru deduced. The lobby was splattered with blood everywhere. Decaying piles of bodies scattered about the room and filled the air with a heavy, repugnant musk.

'I think I hear something.' Silently, Shikamaru pushed onward.

"You traitors...You won't let you get away with this!"

"We are not traitors...we are the true shinobi of Konoha."

A group of figures came into view, all wearing ANBU uniforms. One of them was badly injured and appeared to be cornered by four of his former comrades.

"Tenzou...this the end for you," the traitor ANBU told them.

Tenzou gritted his teeth. "Damn it..."

"Kill him."

All at once, the four traitorous ANBU rushed at Tenzou. Unable to gather the strength to defend himself, he shut his eyes and waited for the end to come. However, it never did. Baffled, the injured ANBU opened his eyes to find that all four the traitors were frozen stiff, shocked expressions on their faces.

"_Kagemane no Jutsu: _success." Shikamaru emerged from the shadows, grinning.

"Y-You...!"

"S-Son of a...!"

Changing his hand seal formation, he followed up with another jutsu. "_Kage Kubi Shibari no Jutsu!" _Black claws of shadow slithered up their bodies and around their necks, suffocating them. Soon, the four traitor ANBU dropped to the ground. Shikamaru turned to Tenzou. "Are you alright?"

Tenzou let out a long breath of relief. "Yeah...thank you."

"What happened?" Shikamaru asked, looking around at the heavily damaged ANBU HQ. "What the hell is going on here?"

"We were ambushed by our own ANBU. They booby trapped the headquarters and took us by surprise. We didn't stand a chance...Damn it!" Tenzou cursed angrily.

"It's not your fault," Shikamaru said. "Who could of suspected there were this many traitors..."

"They're not just traitors. They think they're doing this for the good of Konoha."

"What? That's ridiculous!"

Tenzou nodded. "Danzou has warped their minds, brainwashing them."

"Danzou?"

"Yes. He was the leader of a seperate training unit of ANBU known as 'Root'. The sub-division was made up of exceptionally skilled, young shinobi, specifically trained for wartime. The ANBU from the Root Division were dangerous...they were merciless and had no morals. Shinobi under his wing underwent a horrific training method in order to function without emotion and ensure maximum efficiency," Tenzou explained.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "Maximum efficiency huh..." He thought back to the time when he lead a certain group of genins on a rescue mission. 'Ninjas are supposed to disregard emotions...but sometimes they help you make the best decisions in the end.'

"When the 3rd Hokage learned of Danzou's methods he ordered that the Root Division be dissolved. Apparently, those ninjas must still be under his order. Danzou was a man previously considered for the position of Hokage. I hear that he didn't approve of the 3rd Hokage's peaceful means, preferring the use of military power rather than diplomacy. You can imagine how he must not of been happy when the Godaime, Tsunade-sama, was chosen as the successor considering she was the Sandaime's former student."

"I see..." Shikamaru said, taking all of it in. "This guy must of been planning this for a long time ever since the Sandaime's death. I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but Konoha...is being invaded by Sound right now."

"WHAT?" Tenzou's eyes shot wide open. Although he had heard the emergency sirens, he had assumed it was due to Root's attacks. The Root originated ANBU executed their ambush long before the alarms went off. "That must mean Danzou's working with Orochimaru!"

"Yeah, exactly. Who knows how deep this goes. I'll take you to the hospital first and then..."

"No, I can make it there myself," Tenzou said sternly. "If what you're saying is true, then reporting this to the Hokage-sama is of the utmost importance. All the medic centers should already be under heavy guard because of the state of emergency. I should have no trouble making it there safely."

Shikamaru hesitated but nodded. "Alright. Take care then."

"You too. Thanks again and good luck."

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

After waiting a bit, Naruto's group emerged from their hiding place to an empty stadium, completely sealed in from the outside. The four of them began searching for the tunnel entrance to the Scroll of Hokage.

"Hey, you think Sand would come help Konoha?" Kankuro asked to Temari.

"I doubt it," she replied. "We might be allied but with those old fogies still in charge they won't lend a hand so freely."

"Yeah, true," he agreed. "Not without compensation anyways."

"Found it!" Naruto said from below, in a corner of the arena ring. The trio of siblings hopped down to Naruto.

"Are you sure?" Gaara asked.

Naruto placed his hand on the arena wall and tapped it twice. A clear echo resonated, signifying that the wall was indeed hollowed. "Yeah."

He pulled back his fist and smashed his knuckles into wall. Instantly a circular seal flicked onto the camouflaged door upon impact and a large indent was created. The trapped door did not buckle however.

"Thick steel fortified with a high level seal," Naruto commented.

"Stand back." Gaara stood in front of the entrance and began to summon the sand before him.

Temari noticed that Gaara had not removed the cork from the red gourd equipped to his back. "Where is that sand coming from?"

"The Earth."

Kankuro gave his brother an odd look at the vague answer. "Huh...you mean the ground?"

"Gaara has learned how to extract and form sand from various materials," Naruto told them. "Rocks, dirt, concrete, even dust...pretty much anything composed of stone or similar elements."

"Then what's in the gourd?" asked Kankuro.

Naruto only answered, "Special sand."

Gaara thrust his hand out, opposing palm on top of the other, and called out, "_Sunase." _With a bullet's swiftness, a broad stream of sand whipped around and smashed into the door. The steel was flung off its hinges and clashed down the dark tunnel now revealed. A long, lengthy echo was created from the clang of the metal. The four of them stepped up to the hole and peered down into the darkness. No end was in sight.

Naruto cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled into the tunnel, "OOOOIIIIII!"

"...OOOooooiiiiii..."

"...ooooiiiiiiii..."

"...ooiii..."

The tunnel seemed to shake slightly, causing various pepples to sprinkle down from the roof of the tunnel. Gaara and Temari cast disapproving stares at Naruto who looked back innocently.

"What? I just wanted to test how deep it was."

"You could of caused a cave in," Gaara said.

"Not to mention that if anyone's guarding down there they'll be expecting us now you idiot," Temari reprimanded him.

Naruto 'hmphed' to himself defiantly and retorted, "If anyone's down there they would of heard the door being blown open anyways, dummy."

Embarrassed at the truth of the statement, Temari looked away as her face flushed. "Wh-Whatever."

Kankuro couldn't help but chuckle slightly. Annoying his elder sister at any chance happened to be one of his favorite pastimes, but he often lacked an ally. As a result, he was subject to much physical abuse. "Heh, gee, good one Temari...way to point of the obviou--OOF!" Apparently, that was still true regardless.

"Just shut up." Temari removed her elbow from his stomach.

Naruto took a step into the tunnel. "I'm going in," he began and started in but Temari snatched a hold of his sleeve.

"Wait. What if someone _is _in there? It could be a trap."

"So? I'll take care of 'em," came Naruto's nonchalant reply. A prompt bop in the back of his head followed soon afterwards. "You mind not doing that?" Naruto muttered.

"No, I don't mind," Temari said, arms crossed. 'He may not be a loud-mouthed brat anymore but he's still obnoxiously headstrung,' she thought to herself. It suddenly occurred to her that he did pout rather cutely for a dreadful Akatsuki, but she kept that thought to herself. Temari shifted to Gaara. "Is he always like this?"

"Yes," Gaara said with a small smile. "Naruto, I agree with Temari. We do not need to rush in. We should exercise an amount of caution before proceeding and we have no idea what awaits us down there. Also, we should await the arrival of Kisame and Itachi."

"I guess..." he relented. Naruto pondered for a quick second before snapping his fingers as an idea came to him. "I got it!"

"What is it?" Gaara questioned.

Naruto formed a single seal, then pressed his hand onto the ground, shouting, "_Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" _A puff of smoke later and Kankuro & Temari found themselves staring dubiously at what seemed to be a small fox.

Quirking an eyebrow, Kankuro jabbed his finger at the kit. "What's this pint-sized little runt supposed to--GAAH!" he yelped out, having found the little fox to be gnawing on his finger. "Get this thing off me!"

"_Watch your mouth!" _chimed the crimson-eyed animal. "_I eat humans like you for breakfast!"_

"I-It...talks?" Temari gasped, her eyes lighting up. "That is...ADORABLE!" Sweeping up the fox into her arms, she cuddled him into her chest.

"_H-Hey! Naruto, get her off me!"_

A sweatdrop appeared on Naruto's forehead. "Uh, Temari, could you let him go? I think you're suffocating my demon there."

Temari blinked. "Demon?" Releasing the fox, she looked over him a second time.

The animal glared back at her indignantly. "_What're ya staring at!"_

Her heart fluttered at the high-pitched squeek. No, there was no doubt about it. Coming to the same conclusion once more, she confirmed that he was indeed an adorably cute baby fox. That talked.

"That thing is a _demon_?" Kankuro scoffed. "Ha, yeah right."

_"Don't make me transform and eat you!" _he growled at the puppeteer who sneered back.

"Ichibi! Don't." Naruto commanded in a stern voice.

The fox turned his nose up obnoxiously. "_Hmph."_

"He might not look it but Ichibi is a demon fox," Naruto said. "Now, Ichibi, I need you to do me a favor. Go down that tunnel and check it out. See if there's any traps or guards."

"_Mmm...I'll think about it. First, get me someone to eat will ya--waaaaah!" _A swift kick catapulted the fox down the staircase.

"Just get in there," Naruto growled in irritation. "Sometimes I really don't know if its worth it to summon a demon. Toads sure demanded a hell of a lot less."

"Wasn't that overdoing it?" Temari wondered dryly to Naruto, who simply shrugged in return.

"He'll survive."

"Tch, serves that punk right for chomping on me," Kankuro muttered under his breath.

"..." Gaara couldn't help but sigh deeply and shook his head at all the commotion.

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

Hinata glanced over at Kiba with concerned eyes. "Are you sure you don't need me to carry him, Kiba-kun?"

Kiba, who had Shino draped over his shoulder, waved it off with a weak smile. "It's alright. You've already carried Shino most of the way here."

"B-But you're still injured!"

"Ah don't worry about it, I can handle it. Besides, it's the least I can do," Kiba said, glancing sadly at the limp Shino. "It's my fault Shino's like this. If I wasn't so damn careless then he wouldn't of..."

A dog's bark interrupted Kiba.

"No, Akamaru, you can't help," Kiba said with a smile at the large, white dog. He had been extremely relieved when his canine companion had regained consciousness. "You're still recovering too boy."

"Oh my god!" Hinata gasped out suddenly. "Kiba-kun, look!"

As they emerged from the forest, they could see Konoha's north gate up ahead of them. Or what was left of it. It was completely demolished and bodies were scattered about on the ground.

"Wh-What happened here?" Hinata wondered fearfully. "C-Could it have been...N-Naruto-kun?"

Kiba closed his eyes and sniffed the air, concentrating. His jaw dropped open abruptly in shock and Akamaru began whimpering, sensing the samething his master did. "N-No...not Naruto. These guys were stronger. Much stronger. To leave behind such a powerful chakra scent...who the hell were these guys...?"

"K-Kiba-kun?"

Kiba shook himself out of his reverie after a moment. "...We need to get Shino to a hospital first. C'mon, we better be careful."

Hinata nodded and they treaded onward.

* * *

_Neechan - _Older 'Sis 

**(Jutsu Index)**

_Kuchiyose no Jutsu - _Summoning Technique  
_Kagemane no Jutsu - _Shadow Imitation Technique  
_Kage Kubi Shibari no Jutsu - _Shadow Neck Bind Technique

**(Original Jutsus) **

_Sunase _- Sand Torrent

* * *

A/N: Things _will _be getting more serious soon. 

Tenzou, also known under codename Yamato, is from the manga. The woman from Naruto's dream is also from the manga. If you figured out who it is, know that that's just Naruto's nickname for her.

Some background on summoning. The more powerful a summon is, the harder it is to control, regardless of the blood contract. Exceptionally strong summons, such as Gamabunta, carry requirements in order for them to obey the summoner. A common requirement for such summons includes that the summoner himself must be exceptionally strong. More malicious summons such as Manda, Orochimaru's snake summon, additionally requires human sacrifices. Not adhering to these requirements and displeasing them means the summoner is subject to disobedience or even betrayal from the summoned beast.


	17. Colliding Worlds

* * *

Warning: Minor Use of Strong Language

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 16:  
_Colliding Worlds_

* * *

_You didn't kill them._

'What am I going to do when it starts?' Naruto thought grimly to himself. 'In this state of mind...nothing will ever change and I won't survive. I'll be killed.'

There was a fence. On one side of the fence, Naruto saw Konoha. Smiling faces, children running, playing, elderly laughing. Friends, family, comrades, brothers. Here, the roads glow gold. A fantasy. On the opposing side lay the other world. No one laughing, no one smiling, no one playing. Only living until they can't live anymore. They find no reason or purpose in life because death reaches everyone in absolution. It's accepted. A cold reality where the streets are barren. Barren but honest. An honest reality.

It has been years since Naruto left Konoha. He has never fooled himself into believe that, one day, he could go back to those smiling faces.

'Once you leave never-land, you can never return...huh,' Naruto mused.

He didn't want to go back. Fake smiles, fake laughing, fake friends. Naruto knew the truth as he had never truly been on the other side of the fence. He tipped and tilted on top, a careful balance to one side and back to the other. For years it went on like that. Then one day, he tripped. At that time, Naruto didn't think much of it. All he had to do was climb back on top. But when his feet touched the ground of the other side, the fence the grew and grew and grew. It was much taller than Naruto had originally imagined. Instantly, it had become a towering stone wall.

The wall of reality.

How could he go back to dreaming after already waking up? So Naruto remained on the other side of the fence and said good bye to glowing roads of gold. He eventually grew accustomed the other world. He learned that the two sides of the fence weren't so different in the end. Even if the skies were gray, the children still laugh. Even if the roads glow gold, death is absolute in either world. Different, but the same.

'That's right. What I'm doing...everything I've accomplished to get here...my dream...'

_Hokage._

'That's just a title...I get that now. What I want is still the same thing though.'

_I've waited five years for this day...I will make Konoha pay._

'No...that's not...' Naruto shook his head then smiled darkly to himself. 'Revenge...isn't me. Revenge is for people like _Sasuke_. What I want is different.' His hand closed slowly into a fist. 'So if they interfere...if they happen to get in the way...then that's the way it is. That's reality. Nothing will ever change if I don't understand that.'

Gaara cast a sidelong glance as his friend, pausing. Naruto's eyes were lost and distant, deep in his thoughts. After a moment, he shook his head, letting Naruto remain in solitude. Naruto had his own problems as did he. Gaara's eyes rested on his two siblings with a solemn gaze.

Kankuro lounged against a wall, arms crossed, appearing to be bored while Temari watched the entrances in a mechanical effort. Facades. Sand ninjas are proud, self-centered ninja. No matter the situation, they are taught to regard all variables in a cold, calculating matter. Emotions and morals are never included in their equations; they're never taught such things. What are his brother and sister really thinking about under those masks? Gaara wondered.

Logically, there was no reason for them to get themselves involved in this. Temari and Kankuro knew that, so did he. He was their reason. He brought them into a war...and into something much bigger.

'They have no idea what's about to happen...' Gaara's eyelids closed as a thought came to him. They didn't belong here.

'Perhaps later...when they understand everything, it'll be fine...but until then...' Gaara thoughts trailed off as he came to a decision.

Naruto snapped up suddenly, his eyes sharp. "They're here."

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

Orochimaru. Why is it he was so drawn to the man? Sasuke wondered. How could the thread between them be so strong? It was frightening. 

'Itachi...must die..'

But in order to do that... 'I _need_ Orochimaru.' It was a disgusting realization, one that he has known since he defected five years ago. Or his attempt to. If only Konoha had let him go. If only they had failed.

'Naruto...' The name brought neither sadness nor anger. Just...nothing. A void. It was only a name now. Five years was enough time for Sasuke to train himself into believing that.

"Where is that damn snake?" Sasuke growled under his breath. Orochimaru was here, in this very village right now, and yet the Sannin had made no attempt to contact him at all.

"What was that Sasuke?" Lee asked.

"Nothing," Sasuke muttered. His teeth clenched silently to himself. 'That arrogant bastard...he _knows _I'm going to come for him. After everything I put on the line for him...' Five years Sasuke wasted in Konoha. Orochimaru never attempted to take Sasuke again after failing that time. He must of discovered a new technique that bought him enough time to not have to worry about changing bodies. This left Sasuke abandoned.

'Five whole years I've wasted! All the training I could of done under Orochimaru if things had been different...damn it! Jiraiya hasn't taught me anything...just tricks to keep me occupied while that damn woman strengthens my seal over time. How can I learn anything useful from Kakashi as long I have this fucking dog collar on me?' Sasuke repressed the urge to swear out loud. 'Orochimaru better have a good fucking answer for letting me waste down here.'

Sasuke's eyes narrowed abruptly. He felt it. A sharp spike in a high level chakra. 'About damn time.' Orochimaru was telling him where he was. 'But what the hell is he up to? Konoha will know where he is now...Orochimaru knows that. Shit...I have to hurry.'

Sasuke turned to Lee. "This way."

"Wait, Sasuke-kun... " Lee said with a hesitant expression. "I don't think that's a good idea. Let's report back and get reinforcements--"

A quick, fierce snap cut Lee off mid-sentence. He coughed once, a small bit of blood spraying out, then lost consciousness.

Sasuke stared down at Lee's sleeping body. 'Lee...I hope you don't get in my way later. I won't hold back.' Sasuke paused at his thought and a small smile formed. 'Heh, but I guess you'd prefer that wouldn't you?'

"Later idiot." Sasuke said and leapt off.

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

"You feel that?" Kisame said. 

Itachi nodded. "Yes."

"Snake-fucker is going to start stirring shit up I bet." He grinned largely, revealing his spiked teeth. "Good." Kisame laughed as he entered the tunnel.

"Hmph. Total chaos does nothing for me. Such things are why Orochimaru is not involved with Akatsuki any longer." Itachi glanced at the younger Akatsuki beside him. "Naruto, watch for Orochimaru. He will make his move soon."

"Gotcha."

Following Itachi, Gaara paused at the entrance and shared a glance with Naruto. "Protect--" he started.

Naruto waved him off, slapping his friend lightly on the back. "I know, I know. Me and Ichibi got this."

"_That's right," _added the tiny firefox perched on Naruto's shoulder. _"Ichibis gotta look out for each other y'know."_

Gaara smiled at master and summon, nodding, before following the other two Akatsuki into the endless tunnel. Where the "Scroll of Hokage" awaited them.

"Gaara..." Temari watched Gaara's figure disappear into the shadows.

Kankuro said nothing. 'I don't like this...we're stuck in the middle of Konoha during a war. It won't be long until Konoha figures out something's up, and then what? Obviously we're not gonna fight with Konoha against Gaara...which means the only choice we got is to follow Gaara out...' His eyes narrowed, glaring to himself. 'Tch, I get the feeling that whatever's going on is something much bigger than either of us get 'Sis. We shouldn't be here. That Gaara...'

Kankuro followed Temari's gaze into the tunnel and stared into the shadows where his brother once was. Kankuro's eyes lost its hard edge. 'Heh...you punk. So damn mature now, _I _feel like the younger brother.' The puppet master's eyes became serious once more. 'I know what you were thinking about Gaara. We were both thinking it earlier weren't we, back in the forest? But Temari...' He looked at his sister out of the corner of his eye. 'Idiot doesn't want to let go of you. Damn women are too emotional, I swear,' Kankuro thought, chuckling to himself.

"What are you laughing at?" Temari snapped at him.

"Nothing, nothing...just...Gaara's a lot older now isn't he? Punk's all grown up."

Temari blinked. Slowly, she relaxed into a soft smile. "Yeah."

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

Orochimaru walked down a ravaged street of Konoha, Kabuto and Anko by his side. 

"Orochimaru-sama, he is..." Kabuto whispered.

Orochimaru grinned. "I know."

"Then..."

Orochimaru held up his hand. "This is exactly what I want. Go tell Hanzo the operation has started then meet me at the stadium with Sai."

'So the operation was centered around Sasuke after all...' Kabuto thought to himself. "I understand, Orochimaru-sama."

The enslaved Konoha kunoichi watched Orochimaru and Kabuto with a careful eye. 'How far has Orochimaru thought ahead?' Anko wondered. 'So Sasuke was involved in his plan from the very beginning, but why go to the trouble of getting me then?'

"_Chidori Nami!!"_

Orochimaru and Anko leapt as lighting split the ground beneath them in two. The crack of earth burned with a sizzling hiss.

Orochimaru smiled as he followed the carnage to its source. "What a pleasant greeting you have arranged for me, Sasuke-kun."

"Cut the shit Orochimaru!" Sasuke said angrily with a sneer. "You think I'm some goddamn puppet you can toy with?"

Orochimaru quirked his brow upward. "What are you talking about Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke's eyes burned with hatred. Orochimaru was telling him something without actually saying it. He's saying that he controls the Uchiha's life...as if it's nothing. Sasuke needs Orochimaru. Orochimaru doesn't need him. Not anymore.

'You _mother fucker...you think I don't get it?' _Sasuke whispered in his thoughts. His eyes locked with Orochimaru's, never breaking away. A purple chakra began seeping from his body like smoke.

'Sasuke...you are...wonderful,' Orochimaru thought, mesmorized by the spin of Sasuke's sharingan wheel and the hatred in his voice. Orochimaru's smile widened as he suppressed a wave of euphoric laughter. "Sasuke-kun...I know what you are thinking."

"_Do you now?" _The avenger's eyes radiated with an intense red glow now and his voice hoarse, dark.

Anko's brows furrowed sharply. 'What are you doing Orochimaru? At the state Sasuke's in, he's going to...'

"Yes, I know Sasuke. You think that you have risked everything and have everything to lose, while I have risked nothing. You're wrong."

"_What?"_

"I will tell you this because you deserve to know, Sasuke-kun." Orochimaru's eyes were no longer mocking. "You have helped me a complete a weapons experiment I have been working on for eighteen years. You are my perfect subject. You see, you were never meant to reach me five years ago. You were meant to fail."

"What the hell...WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU SAYING!" With a quick flick, Sasuke activated the Chidori and his hand became engulfed in lightning. "You saying that _everything I went through__was for nothing_? IS THAT IT? You son of a..."

"No, Sasuke. I'm saying that everything you went through is what made you a success. Though I didn't originally intend for it to be this way, I couldn't have asked for better results."

"If I'm the perfect subject..." Sasuke began angrily, "then why did—"

"--I leave you to rot?" Orochimaru finished. "You think abandoned you don't you? That Konoha is your prison and I am punishing you for failing to reach me. Is that it?"

'H-He's exactly right...'

"Please Sasuke-kun, don't think so little of me," Orochimaru said with a nonchalant wave. "I would never do that to you. This has been your training."

The statement bewildered him, halting Sasuke's berserker state. "What...?"

"I told you that hatred was your strongest weapon. For the past five years your hatred has grown expotentially. You hate me much almost as much Itachi don't you?"

"..." Stunned, Sasuke's Chidori phased out, his concentration broke. Orochimaru's gaze pierced through Sasuke like paper. He knew everything.

"That is what I _wanted_."

"Why..." Sasuke murmured out.

"It's the Cursed Seal isn't it?" Anko answered suspiciously.

"That's my Anko." Orochimaru was pleased, smiling. "Everything comes back to the Cursed Seal. The Cursed Seal is the result of a weapon's experiment I started back in Konoha. It is the strongest jutsu I have ever created. I was quite proud of myself at the time but I had no idea of what it would lead to in the future.

"The Cursed Seal is complicated. A demonic based curse that feeds off human flaws such as negative emotions. A spiritual parasite. It begins generating chakra within itself using these energies alone and seems to have no limit to how much chakra it can store within itself. That is how the Cursed Seal works, that's where your external power comes from. Really, a rather marvelous process." His eyes glowed, wrapt up in the brilliance he recognized as nature's intelligent design. Orochimaru continued. "However, by itself the Cursed Seal is far from perfect. The human body is simply to weak to withstand the excess chakra and eventually breaks down. The second level of the Cursed Seal is simply the demonic parasite further taking over the body.

"In the end, the Sound Five have ultimately proved to be my failures," he stated. Pointing at his would-be disciples with his black nails, Orochimaru said, "But you Sasuke...and you Anko...you two are my accidental successions."

"When I was exiled from Konoha because of my Cursed Seal experiment, I left you in the hands of Konoha. This turned the best possible outcome. You see, Konoha has inadvertently solved the flaw in my Cursed Seal. A backwards solution it may be, as clumsy as the Konoha simpletons could come up with, but a perfectly sound solution none the least.

"Putting a seal on top of the seal. Normally, the body can't handle the Cursed Seal understand natural circumstances, whether it is activated or not. Any slight change in mental state can stir the Cursed Seal and if it's not activated, then the Cursed Seal will react violently against the host body. Intense, piercing sensation, abrupt, immobilizing headaches are just two samples. Sound correct Sasuke-kun, Anko-chan?"

Their uneasy silence was an honest enough answer for him.

"You see why Konoha is full of idiots? They don't take the time to understand if it doesn't immediately concern them. Shove everything in a dark closet and keep the door shut. They didn't think of what would happen to either of you when they covered up your seals did they? What were their answers to your unexplained pains? They pretend it didn't happen and covered it up with another seal. Typical, isn't it."

Sasuke and Anko unconsciously clutched the nape of theirs, over the Cursed Seal. 'He's right...' they thought.

"But for once, the simpletons methods proved to be useful. Over time, both the body and the Cursed Seal gradually adjust to the multiple layers of seals which act as a filter between the two. They get used to each other. Eventually, the Cursed Seal evolves and adapts a passive mode in order to continue to survive on the host. The Cursed Seal gathers energy indefinitely, building up massive amounts of stored chakra inside the seal, while remaining dormant. With so much chakra, the excess boils over into your body's original chakra reserves. You have been getting stronger this entire time, even without the Seal activated. Can you imagine how strong you'll be when the chains are finally off, Sasuke-kun?

"Do can understand why you are my perfect subject. The only life you know is hatred. Now you can use that hatred to become stronger than you ever could of imagined, than ever was possible. This is _your _power now Sasuke."

"My power..." Sasuke said it strangely, unfamiliar.

"And Anko will teach you how to use it."

"...What?" The woman in question looked unamused.

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

"_Naruto,_" Ichibi said, licking his lips eagerly. The animal's eyes glowed a dark red.

The young Akatsuki nodded, already knowing what Ichibi sensed. "Temari, Kankuro, someone's here."

Temari and Kankuro tensed up at the alert. "Damn, how many?" Kankuro said.

"He's already inside..." Naruto cursed to himself as he saw the figure enter from across stadium a few meters away. '_Don't get in my way Konoha...'_

The Konoha scout stepped into the sunlight at the edge of the center ring.

Naruto's eyes widened.

'Sakura...' The name echoed in his head.

_Naruto!_

_Baka!_

_Sasuke-kun..._

_I'll bring him back._

_I promise._

Memories surfaced, short flashes assaulting his mind's eye, striking Naruto at an instance.

But that nostalgia was short-lived. The years have made Naruto a cynical thinker. He was no longer the same wide-eyed adolescent he was in Konoha. Naruto's eyes sharpened and the name echoed in his mind once more, but in a different tone.

'...Sakura.'

Temari, alarmed at Naruto's reaction, looked ahead to see who it was. As recognition donned her, she quickly understood. 'If I remember correctly...Sakura-san was Naruto's old teammate wasn't she?' Temari thought to herself. She cast a glance back towards Naruto. 'You're not the cold-blooded killer you want to think you are.' Temari paused in thought hesitantly. 'At least, I don't think so. I might not know you that well but...I do know I'm glad that someone like you is with Gaara. It puts me at ease.'

'So the least I can do is help take some of the weight off your shoulders.' Temari's expression became serious, returning back to the present situation. Thinking quickly, she grabbed Naruto's wrist, pulling him back to the wall. "Hide!"

"Wha--"

"Just do it! Kankuro, genjutsu!"

"Tch," Kankuro muttered. Forming a seal with one hand, he burrowed into the ground in a trail of smoke. He gritted his teeth in frustration. 'What a shitty situation. We can't let Konoha make a connection about us and Gaara's organization. If they think we're with this Akatsuki...there's no way their Hunter-nin will ever let us escape.' An unpleasant scowl covered his face. '...Annoying.'

Meanwhile Temari wrapped her genjutsu around Naruto and herself. Their figures faded into the wall behind until not their shadows remained. They laid side by side with the flat of their backs to the wall, watching through the one-way mirror as Sakura closed in on them..

The Konoha kunoichi hopped down into the ring and surveyed the surroundings casually. Something caught her attention. "Hm?"

'Eh?'

There in the center sat a small, bright orange fox, his tail wagging about as normal.

_"The hell are you doing!" _Naruto whispered harshly, the shock nearly pulling him out of the illusion.

Temari pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh and whispered, "_Naruto you idiot."_

_"How is this my fault!"_

The fox, his back to them, looked over his shoulder. And smirked.

Naruto bared his fangs. "_That little shit...Ichibi!!"_

Kankuro, safely buried underground, heard everything and rolled his eyes at the situation. 'I knew that stupid fox was useless.'

Before they could do anything, Sakura made her way to Ichibi with her pink flowing hair bouncing up and down lightly. Sakura was well on her way to becoming a grown woman at eighteen years old; her body enough evidence of that. Hands on her hips, the pink-haired kunoichi kneeled over and peered down at the animal. The fox in question tilted his button black nose up and stared back with big round eyes.

A few seconds passed.

"Kawaii!!" Sakura let out an exasperated breath of air.

"_I know, right?" _Temari added in a whisper. Both girls sighed softly, slight blushes apparent on their cheeks.

Naruto stared at her with sardonic, beady eyes. "_Why are you agreeing with her in this situation?"_

Sakura knelt down and picked Ichibi up gently. As his paws left the ground, the little fox let out a tiny squeak. The hearts of both girls' stopped for second.

"Kawaaaaiiii!!"

"_I know, right?_" Temari agreed with another blush.

"_Stop that," _Naruto whispered, annoyed.

Sakura had become completely absorbed in Ichibi. She held him in the air and beamed up at the animal with a bright smile.

A familar smile Naruto thought. The same, beautiful smile he used to remember. One that the young Akatsuki taught himself to never forgot. Naruto's eyes shifted downwards as he recalled his memories. 'I used to rmember that smile and think, 'That's proof. That's proof there's beauty out there. Even if I can't see from the shitty place I'm at, it's there, somewhere.' The Akatsuki's eyes became distant.

'It comforted me knowing that...' Naruto looked up with his sky-blue eyes and looked straight at the young, pink-haired woman. '...because I knew that while I dove into the darkness, the light will still be there. I can't see it anymore, but that doesn't mean it's gone. That was enough for me, knowing that.'

Naruto watched Sakura hold the fox in her arms, petting Ichibi slowly.

"_Sigh...so jealous..." _Temari sighed.

Naruto's eye twitched. "_Like I said, in this situation why are you even..."  
_

_"_So little guy, who's your master?"

'Eh?'

A sense of dread crept up upon the three. The fox seemed to sweat slightly but continued to stare innocently, letting out another tiny squeak.

"Heh..." Sakura's brow twitched and ugly smirk formed.** "Don't get cute with me brat!" **she threatened fiercely, shaking the tiny animal with a violent energy.

The audience formed sweatdrops by their foreheads, thinking, 'Scary...'

After several sessions of vicious shaking, Ichibi began to whimper.

"_What are you..." _Naruto started, confused at first, then annoyed, and finally angry. "_Ichibi, what are you doing idiot! Do something!" _He seemed to yell. In fact, to Temari's eyes, no words had come out. Naruto spoke in a tone so low that only Ichibi's natural fox ears could recognize.

The fox turned to Naruto, revealing tears in his eyes. "_B-But...what should I do master?"_

"_Y-You..." _Naruto growled. The anger built and built upon itself until finally he let out an exasperated sigh, helpless. 'Ichibi's the youngest of Kyuubi's brothers...but in the end, he's still just a kid. Temari's right, it is my fault. I should of used one of the others after all. At least for this mission.'

"Well!" Sakura yelled at the fox (still whimpering). "Had enough yet? Tell me who your master is! I don't know anybody in Konoha who can summon something like you. You can't fool me. You have too much chakra for you to be anything else."

'You still haven't learned to hide yourself yet you idiot?!' Naruto thought incredulously, slapping himself in the face as he realized it. Amazing, the genjutsu managed to remain active during this extraneous activity.

Sakura blinked suddenly, the ugly smirk vanished, and halted in her terrorizing temporarily. "Or can it be...you can't talk?" she asked the animal innocently. That expression was gone as soon as it appeared, the ugly smirk rearing it's ugly head, unfortunately for the poor, puppy demon fox. Sakura smiled. "But that's impossible isn't it? It's a good thing you're so strong or I'd feel bad about doing all this," she said with a small giggle. "Now, who is your master and where is he?"

The young fox uttered out one last helpless whimper before finally pointing his paw towards the wall.

"_Sorry Master_..." Ichibi sniffed.

Sakura followed Ichibi's paw and watched as a man stepped out of the wall. A young man, about her age, with blue eyes and blond spiky hair. Covered completely by a light black cloak, one thing about his garb stuck out immediately to her. The red clouds detailed at the bottom.

Temari noticed these additional details on Naruto's cloak as well. 'That wasn't there before was it?' she asked herself. 'It must of been after those other Akatsuki came. I suppose he doesn't need to hide who he is anymore.'

"Yo," he greeted.

"Your Akatsuki, aren't you!" Sakura accused in a harsh tone. Out of her pouch she slipped on a pair of black, leather gloves and stepped back into a fighting stance. However, Sakura's ready attitude lasted only a moment as one detail that had escaped her early gradually focused.

"Wait." Sakura said, to herself or to him, she wasn't sure. The kinks in her head were turning, piecing everything together. A young man, about her age. Blond spiky hair. Longer than she remembered. Pairs of three identical scars on each cheek. More prominent now. His lips, still soft. His eyes, still endearing.

Still Naruto.

"Naruto."

She ran.

"Naruto!"

She ran faster.

"NARUTO!"

Until she found himself deep in his chest with her arms wrapped around his waist. Naruto felt his chest dampen.

"_I...I missed you so much..._" Sakura cried into his chest. "I thought you were _dead!"_

Naruto stood frozen, his eyes wide. 'What is this...reaction...?'

* * *

_Chidori Nami_ - One Thousand Birds Wave 

_Genjutsu_ - Illusion Ninja Skills

_Ichibi _- One-Tail

kawaii - cute  
baka - idiot/stupid

* * *

A/N: Looks like I'm back. More chapters coming out. They'll be longer in general. This is the longest chapter so far. What did you think of this chapter? Trying to figure out if my writing style is becoming more conceited with each break I survive. Hopefully not. I think it's getting a lot better actually (that sounded conceited). More soon. 

ps. That _other _A/N was...yeah. It was...yeah. The answer to that can be revealed by discovering the meaning behind the code number that was at the very end. That was the real reason. (/end babble)


	18. Cold Reality

* * *

**Heart of Darkness**

Chapter 17:_  
Cold Reality_

* * *

"And Anko will teach you how to use it." 

Anko quirked an eyebrow, unamused. "What?"

Sasuke mirrored her reaction and added, "What is she doing here, anyway?"

Orochimaru's eyes gleamed. "Anko is the same as you Sasuke," the Sannin said. He walked over to his female subordinate. Sasuke narrowed his eyes as Orochimaru casually placed his hands on Anko's shoulders. She flinched at his touch. Slowly, he pulled down her blouse to reveal the Hell Seal on the nape of her neck. Bending down closer to the tattoo, his tongue slipped out slyly and flicked the surface of her skin.

Instantly, her body went frozen, and the Hell Seal stretched out across her skin, glowing. Anko remained still. She still didn't move, she didn't resist. Orochimaru rose his eyes and looked at her. Anko stared right at him with were cold and black eyes, filled with darkness...they were Death.

Orochimaru cupped her chin, and stared into those eyes of Death with a black smile. "_Beautiful," _he whispered.

Anko never looked away once.

Sasuke shifted uneasily. 'Is Orochimaru insane? It feels like she's about to tear his heart out at any moment...' More unnerving was that Sasuke didn't doubt for a moment that she could. His body was shaking. Anko's enormous surge of chakra threatened to overwhelm his own spirit. 'How can she be this strong...? We're both from Konoha and yet the differences between our levels are this..._god damn it!' _Sasuke swore.

"Anko-chan is the oldest carrier of the Cursed Seal. She can teach you things about the Heaven Seal that I suspect not even I know. Isn't that right, Anko-chan?"

Anko looked at Orochimaru blankly before crossing her arms and gazing away.

"But she's been in Konoha this whole time," Sasuke argued indifferently. "How could she possibly know that much with all the restrictions?"

Orochimaru cast a quick smirk at Anko before facing Sasuke. "There are many ways around them. Eventually you would no doubt have learned of them on your own. Though...we don't have time for that now do we Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke eyes became cold. "No, I don't," he said.

Orochimaru nodded knowingly. "Then let's not waste our time any further and begin your training. Follow me."

"To where?" Sasuke asked cautiously.

"Your first test."

Anko closed her eyes. Only one thought went through her mind. 'I will kill you Orochimaru. I promise.' She thought this only once. It was all she needed.

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

"Naruto."

She ran.

"Naruto!"

She ran faster.

"NARUTO!"

Until she found himself deep in his chest with her arms wrapped around his waist. Naruto felt his chest dampen.

"_I...I missed you so much..._" Sakura cried into his chest. "I thought you were _dead!"_

The two stood there in the middle of the arena, silent, with only muffled cries to fill the air. Sakura, arms wrapped around Naruto's waist, her face buried in his chest, and Naruto, frozen with a cold gaze...they remained this way for a long time before any other words were spoken.

Not a soul dare interrupt them.

Sakura finally released Naruto and held him at arms length, facing him eye to eye. "I'm glad you're alive Naruto. It makes me happy."

Naruto's expression remained fixed, empty, but troubled underneath. His brows furrowed. 'What am I supposed to say, thanks?'

Her smile became distant and her eyes lowered. "Naruto, you hate me don't you?"

_'What?'_

"You hate Konoha don't you? Why else would you make us suffer with a make-believe death? If you've been alive all these years..."

Naruto flinched and looked away. "That's right. I hated all of you."

"I...I thought about this for a long time after...after your passing. How all of us treated you...Sasuke and I were your closest friends and yet we..."

The cold, honest truth of Sakura's admission stirred something in Naruto. "And? I don't need you to tell me how shitty I had it, Sakura-_san," _Naruto replied sarcastically in a cold tone. 'Unless you want me to kill you right here, don't bring up bad memories Sakura,' he told her in his thoughts.

"Naruto, I--"

"If you're here to say your sorry, then fine, I forgive you. I said I used to hate all of you, but that's in the past now. Now I'm here and your there so it's better off just pretending I'm dead anyways." His words were quick and harsh, the meaning behind them apathetic.

Sakura took a step back, tears rolling down her cheeks. "_Naruto, you're cruel..."_

Naruto looked away from her, uneasy. "Yeah, I am. It's better this way..."

"That's bullshit. How is it better?"

"What?" Naruto looked up. Temari stood beside them, arms crossed, with an unpleasant frown.

Kankuro glared at the earth above. 'What are you doing Temari! Why are you revealing yourself!'

Temari cast Naruto an icy gaze. "How is it better if she pretends your dead?"

"So the ninja killing her won't be me."

A violent crack echoed throughout the stadium. Temari cradled her hand, red and numb from hitting Naruto chiseled cheek with a vicious intensity.

Stunned, Naruto stared at Temari with eyes wide.

Kankuro's mouth was agape as even he had heard the enormous sound of the slap from underground. 'Holy shit 'Sis,' he thought in awe. 'You're...fearless. This guy...he's stronger than Gaara. I know you feel it too. And yet, even knowing that, you still...'

Sakura looked Temari in amazing, albeit with slight confusion. 'Temari-san...?'

"That was a lie, Naruto," Temari stated.

Naruto didn't speak for a moment. Gradually, he spoke in a low tone, "...That was a lie."

Temari's eyes finally softened. "Gaara is a part of Akatsuki," she said, looking at both Sakura and Naruto. "Akatsuki is an enemy of everyone. I accept this. Gaara and I are...enemies," she stated with a truthful sadness. "But Gaara's my brother before anything else. I'm happier knowing he's alive and my enemy than...dead."

Temari didn't say anymore, letting her words sink into Naruto. She turned around, calling out, "Kankuro, get up here. We're going scouting in case any of Sakura's friends show up."

Kankuro exploded out of the ground with a twitch in his eye. "Geez, just give me away why don't you 'Sis."

"Shut up."

As Temari passed the Akatsuki, he murmured, "Thanks."

Naruto didn't take his eyes away from Sakura, neither did Temari look back but still...she couldn't help smiling a bit.

Kankuro watched his sibling out of the corner of his eyes. 'You're getting too involved 'Sis. You're gonna end up getting attached this guy, I know it,' the puppetmaster thought angrily.

Temari's adamant interjections into Naruto's affairs didn't surprise Kankuro. 'Temari...he reminds you of Gaara doesn't he?' Kankuro thought. 'You want to protect him, teach him right from wrong. But Naruto's not you're little brother...'

Once the siblings left, Sakura and Naruto stood in solitude as the only people in the ring. An awkward silence.

Naruto stepped forward, slowly, and took a hold of Sakura's wrists in a gentle motion. Sakura looked up at him questioningly. Without word, he began binding her wrists together with rope.

"What are you..."

"We're enemies. That doesn't change," he said softly.

Sakura offered no reprieve and gazed away from him. '_We're enemies. That doesn't change._' she echoed to herself sadly.

"Sakura...maybe it doesn't mean as much," Naruto began slowly, "but I'm gad your alive too."

_...because I knew that while I dove into the darkness, the light will still be there._

_...That was enough for me, knowing that._

'...Even if I'll never be able to reach it from where I'm at,' he finished.

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

'Damn, I'm behind,' Shikamaru cursed mentally. 'Tsunade told me she sent Sakura ahead already...I hope she didn't find anything.' As the highest ranking chuunin in Konoha leapt from rooftop to rooftop towards the arena, he glanced over his shoulder at his rag-tag following, eyeing them with beady, exasperated eyes. 'Troublesome.' 

Neji, Hinata, and Kiba (with Akamaru) all followed behind closely. Neji he could understand, he was his backup, but Hinata and Kiba? Both were tired and injured from the jounin exam and yet insisted on coming along. They said they needed to talk to the Hokage as soon as possible and Shikamaru was their only way of getting in contact. Not many knew of the Hokage's current whereabouts for security reasons.

'But like I said, why don't they just tell me what they need to tell the Hokage?' Shikamaru argued in thought.

_"Eh? You can't tell me?" Shikamaru quirked his brow up in query. "Why not?"_

_"We just can't," Kiba replied forcefully, Hinata standing behind. "Look, we might tell you eventually but I...I don't want to regret anything else happening because of me. I need to think about this."_

_'Must be something serious for Kiba to talk like this. This isn't like him...Guess I don't have choice. He won't listen to me anyways,' Shikamaru thought. With a shake of his head, he said, "Alright alright. I'll take you to the Hokage, eventually."_

'Somehow,' Shikamaru thought dryly. 'Not even I know where she is right now...but I have a clue.' The intelligent ninja narrowed his eyes in thought. 'Probably has something to do with those chakra spikes I felt earlier...Hope the Godaime knows that it's probably a trap.'

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

In the midst of Sakura's confrontation, Naruto realized his summon had deserted him. He knew the fox had to be close by because their contract didn't allow him to exist in the human world without his sphere of influence. 

"Ichibi! Ichibi!" Naruto yelled at the empty stadium.

"Please come out Ichibi!" Sakura called out, appearing genuinely worried.

Naruto squinted his eyes at her, sweatdrop by his forehead. "Uh, I can look for himself myself, thanks."

"Oh," Sakura resigned, disappointment evident in her voice.

'...In this situation why is she even...' the young Akatsuki sighed and shook his head to himself. 'Forget it Naruto, you'll never understand them.'

He returned his attention to the search and repeated the fox's name out loud. 'Where is that stupid fox? Probably hiding from me because he's embarrassed...I don't have time for this damn it.'

A dark and familiar voice boomed in his thoughts suddenly.

_**'I TOLD YOU OF THIS NARUTO.'**_

'Of what? Ichibi?'

'_**YOU DON'T HAVE TIME TO BE PLAYING AROUND WITH THE BOY. YOU NEED TO MASTER MY BROTHER SHICHIBI SOON, BEFORE THE WARS BEGIN.'**_

'I'm not ready for Shichibi yet. He's too strong. He'll kill me,' Naruto reminded the nine-tailed demon fox.

_'**THERE IS ANOTHER WAY. YOU MUST GET HIM TO RESPECT YOUR STRENGTH.'**_

'That won't--'

_**'SHICHIBI WILL GIVE IN WITH TIME .'**_

'It's too risky, Kyuubi!' Naruto retorted immediately, annoyed. 'Besides, I can't control him if I do it that way.' Naruto cast his mind's eye toward the demon. 'That's what you want, isn't it? I'm not stupid anymore you know. I'll go at my own pace. I'll get strong enough to control Shichibi, Hachibi, and eventually you Kyuubi.'

_**'HAHAHAHA...' **_The Kyuubi laughter roared and shook the grounds of his mind.

Naruto clutched his head forehead, feeling a headache coming. 'Shut up you annoying fox... what's so funny?'

_**'YOU HUMANS. IN TRUTH, IT IS PITIFUL.'**_

'What are you babbling about, Fox?'

_**'NARUTO, YOUR STRENGTH WILL NEVER**_**_ REACH ME.'_**

'It will eventually!' Naruto retorted quickly.

Kyuubi laughed arrogantly once more. _**'YOU CANNOT COMPREHEND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OUR LEVELS.'**_

For a moment, Naruto felt a tinge fear and despair. Fear of the omnipotent demon that slept inside him and despair of the fact that he couldn't do a single thing about it.

That moment was short lived.

'Whatever. Cocky asshole...we'll see about that,' the young Akatsuki muttered to himself. 'Eventually...'

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

Orochimaru continued to lead Sasuke to the arena with Anko following at the rear. 

Sasuke glanced behind him at the jounin who's Hell Seal still stretched across her skin. A few hours ago, she was just another Konoha jounin. Beneath him. Now she's his teacher.

'What's her story anyways?' Sasuke thought. 'I didn't know how her that well before but I get the feeling that she's not going along with this willingly.'

Not that he cared.

More importantly, Sasuke thought, 'It doesn't look like she's straining at all...I still can't believe this person was a jounin at Konoha. It's a joke. How could she live as ninja, holding back all those years, knowing that you can't use your most powerful weapon?

'It's...unbearable.' Sasuke thought darkly, memories of the past five years surfacing.

Anko caught Sasuke's gaze. "What? You got something to say?"

Sasuke didn't flinch away and took the opportunity to quench his curiousity. "How can you use the Cursed Seal? Especially with the Godaime's limiters..."

Anko thought for a moment, "With force."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Force? That's impossible..."

She shrugged. "Maybe for you."

"What?" Sasuke said dangerously.

Catching his tone, Anko looked at Sasuke with a cold stare. 'This brat has no idea how good he has it...to have the best of both worlds...' she thought coldly. Anko grinned. "In other words, you can't use use the Heaven Seal because you're too weak."

"_What did you say?" _Sasuke glared over his shoulder intensely but found she was no longer behind him. She was right next to him, in an instance.

"I said...You. Are. Too. Weak. If you want to test that theory..." Anko's eyes gleamed dangerously as she got right in his face. "_Try me."_

Sasuke lost his footing suddenly and tripped off the branch. Tumbling in the air for a moment before gaining equilibrium, he managed to hit the ground with his feet.

"What's the matter Sasuke-kun?" Anko called out cheerfully.

Sasuke stared up at her smirking face with hatred boiling in his blood. "I will--AHH!" He fell to floor without warning and writhed in pain as the Heaven Seal began to take over his body. "Wh-Why can't I..."

"Because I've lived with this for longer than you. That's all. Sasuke, let me to you one thing: you don't know anything. And if you want to learn anything from me, you better understand that."

'Damn it..._damn it...' _Sasuke cursed to himself.

'This is reality. Deal with it,' Anko thought to him. 'Though I know what he's going through...' Abruptly, she whipped around, feeling the eyes of another.

'Excellent Anko, excellent,' the Sannin thought in glee. Anko's vicious glare at him only seemed to entice Orochimaru even more, causing him to laugh in response.

'How does he control me so easily?' Anko's clenched fist shook, furious. 'I'm the most impatient jounin in Konoha...but for you, Orochimaru...I'll wait forever. I'll wait and I'll kill you.'

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII**

Naruto leaned against the wall, hands behind his head, and gazed into the clouds. 

'Naruto never used to watch clouds before,' Sakura thought. Clearing her throat, she said, "How did Itachi fake your death?"

Naruto continued to watch the sky. "My throat was slit with a special dagger."

Sakura winced and was quiet once more. After a moment, she asked, "Um, do you...want to hear about Sasuke?"

The clouds were misty.

Sakura shuffled uncomfortably. 'All I ever used to do was talk about Sasuke.'

"How did Sasuke react to my death?"

Surprised at first, she answered carefully, "Depressed. Angry. He told me he cried himself to sleep the first couple nights."

'Hypocrite,' Naruto thought. "He tells you a lot doesn't he?"

Sakura narrowed her eyes defensively. "Yes, he does."

"Did he tell you how I died?"

_If you attack me I will kill this boy.  
Naruto looked at Sasuke, hope in his eyes._

She hesitated. "He said Itachi--"

"He watched me."

"What?"

_S-Sasuke...h-help...  
Words could not reach the avenger._  
_  
The cold, sharp metal slid across Naruto's neck and a spray of blood gushed out.  
The darkness slowly engulfed Naruto.  
He looked at Sasuke with wide eyes._

_Betrayal._

Naruto turned away from the clouds and looked into Sakura's eyes. "Sasuke watched me die. And did nothing."

Sakura glared, angered by the accusation. "Sasuke tried to stop Itachi from killing you!"

"Or was he just trying to stop Itachi...period? I didn't ever enter into the picture for him," Naruto said calmly.

"That's not true!" she shouted passionately. "Sasuke was trying to stop his brother _from killing you!_"

"Is that what he said?" he asked.

_I tried to stop him._

"No but..." Sakura clutched the hem of her blouse fiercely, frustrated.

"Whatever," Naruto scoffed, breaking eye contact. "Just forget it."

But there was one thing she had to know. "...Do you hate Sasuke?"

"Yeah. I do." There was no hesitation.

* * *

_Shichibi - _Seven Tails 

_Hachibi - _Eight Tails

(in the context of Naruto's statement, he is referring to the younger brothers of Kyuubi the demon fox, not the jinchuuriki.)

* * *

A/N: Didn't expect this chapter to be this short but when I see a perfect ending to a chapter, I can't ignore it. 

Like I said, things are getting serious. I'm getting a headache just thinking of the chaos I'm going to have to write in the near future...oh boy.

This chapter came out fast eh...I was gonna just keep in on my hard drive while I continued on 18, giving the illusion that it takes me longer to finish chapters than it actually does. But that's cruel considering how long I kept you waiting for the last chapter so here it is. Next one definitely won't come out as soon as this one did...but then again, who knows.


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